Senior officials in the Republican Party are reportedly pressuring the incoming Trump Administration to cancel America's trade agreements with South Africa if it does not change its positions towards Israel, Iran, Russia and China.
The South African government has supported the Hamas terrorist organization in the aftermath of the October 7 massacre committed by Hamas. Soon after the massacre, South Africa attempted to charge Israel with genocide at the International Court of Justice in The Hague (ICJ).
The Center for African Studies at Howard University published a report last year in which it warned that a country that seeks preferential trade agreements with the US "cannot act in a manner that undermines US national security or foreign policy interests." The South African military is cooperating with the Russian military in joint exercises and senior military officers have undergone training in Moscow.
As a result, South Africa refused to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Senior figures in the ruling ANC party met with Hamas leaders and issued a statement condemning the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
South Africa also has close trade relations with China and has grown closer to Iran, recently welcoming Iran's accession to the BRICS trade organization.
Former US Diplomat J. Brooks Spector, who now lives in Johannesburg, told Fox News Digital, "Given the South African positions on the Russia-Ukraine and Mideast conflicts, South Africa is leaning away from American positions in a number of ways, most especially in its vigorous pursuit of Israel and its leaders in the international courts."
Spector said that South Africa's continuation of its attempt to convict Israel of genocide at the ICJ will encourage Republican lawmakers to punish the country by canceling trade agreements.
Among the actions that are being considered against South Africa are excluding it from the nations that benefit from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which could impact South Africa's export inustry and cost the nation tens of thousands of jobs.
Sen. Jim Risch (R-Id), a high-ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told Fox News Digital, "I remain concerned about South Africa’s efforts to cozy up to Russia, China and Iran, including Iran’s terror proxies, and the impact this has on U.S. national security – a vital element in AGOA eligibility. The country’s foreign policy actions will remain a focus of my oversight efforts."
Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) added, "South Africa has harbored sanctioned Russian ships, expanded relations with Iran and issued statements against Israel’s right to defend itself following Hamas’ recent terror attacks."
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in May said during a speech, “Palestine will be free from the river to the sea,” prompting criticism by his country’s Jews for allegedly calling to “exterminate Jews from their homeland.”
On January 26, the ICJ handed down a ruling in South Africa’s case, saying that Israel must do everything to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza and take "immediate" measures for aid provisions. It did not, however, order Israel to stop the war in Gaza.
Later, South Africa submitted an urgent request to the ICJ, asking it to impose additional provisional measures against Israel over its operation in the Gazan city of Rafah, claiming that the provisional measures previously indicated by the Court “are not capable of ‘fully address[ing]’ the changed circumstances and new facts on which [its] request is founded.”