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South Africa has summoned the United States ambassador, Brent Bozell, for the third time in nine months, amid worsening diplomatic tensions between Pretoria and Washington.
A senior South African foreign ministry official said Bozell was called to the ministry on Tuesday to “explain his undiplomatic conduct”, after the US envoy published a strongly worded opinion article accusing the South African government of “hostility” towards the United States.
“It was the third demarche since he started his duties nine months ago. This is a record,” the official told AFP.
Bozell assumed his post in February, at a time when relations between the two countries were already strained over several issues, including South Africa’s genocide case against Israel and US President Donald Trump’s claims that white Afrikaners are being persecuted in South Africa.
The latest dispute also centres on South Africa’s policies on land ownership and black economic empowerment, which Pretoria says are aimed at addressing inequalities that remain decades after the end of apartheid.
Washington announced visa restrictions in mid-September against South Africans accused of promoting “race-based discrimination, incit[ing] violence, or enabl[ing] land confiscation without compensation in South Africa”. Pretoria disputes the issues cited by the US.
Relations deteriorated further after Trump returned to office, with Washington cutting aid to South Africa, expelling its ambassador and confronting President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office over claims of “white genocide”.
The United States also launched a programme last year to resettle thousands of white Afrikaners who say they face persecution and rural crime in South Africa.
Despite the diplomatic strain, South Africa’s foreign ministry said both countries remained committed to resolving their differences.
“There is commitment from both sides to resolve the outstanding matters,” the senior official said.
However, Bozell said in his opinion article published on the US embassy website that Washington had “run out of patience” with Pretoria, accusing the government of failing to adequately respond to several US demands.
Among them, he said, was a request for Ramaphosa to condemn the controversial anti-apartheid chant “Kill the Boer”, which critics say promotes violence against the white Afrikaner minority.
South African courts have ruled that the chant does not amount to hate speech and should be understood within the historical context of the struggle against white-minority rule.
Bozell was first summoned in March, only weeks after assuming office, following comments on the same issue.
He also said Washington wanted rural crime in South Africa designated as a priority and sought alternatives to black equity laws to be extended to the telecommunications and mining sectors.
South Africa has repeatedly maintained that it will not accept what it considers interference in its sovereign right to determine its domestic policies. The latest diplomatic summons highlights the depth of the disagreements still confronting Pretoria and Washington.
