Tensions have grown within South Africa’s coalition government after a dispute over how to deal with looming U.S. tariffs, and claims that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s trade envoy was denied a visa to travel to Washington.
According to Reuters, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Tuesday that the United States had officially rejected a diplomatic visa for Mcebisi Jonas, the envoy picked by Ramaphosa.
According to the DA, Jonas was supposed to negotiate with U.S. officials, but the visa was denied in May.
The party didn’t provide any evidence for this claim, which was repeated again on Thursday by its top international relations official, Emma Louise Powell.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya did not confirm whether the visa was denied.
In a statement, he said, “President Ramaphosa has not had a need for Mr. Jonas to visit the United States on urgent business.”
He added that Jonas had been working behind the scenes with the trade and foreign ministries.
Since Jonas was appointed in April, the government has not reported any meetings between him and U.S. officials.
He was also not part of the South African delegation that went to Washington in May.
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During that visit, U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly made false claims in the Oval Office about mass killings of white South African farmers.
When contacted by Reuters on Thursday, Magwenya declined to comment further.
Jonas did not respond to a message requesting comment. The U.S. embassy in Pretoria also did not respond to a request for comment.
A 30% U.S. tariff on South African goods is expected to begin on August 1.
On Wednesday, Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago warned the tariff could lead to 100,000 job losses.
The ANC is unhappy that the DA, its coalition partner, visited the U.S. earlier this year without coordination.
The DA, a party mainly led by white politicians and often critical of South Africa’s racial diversity policies like Trump, made the trip to plead South Africa’s case to U.S. lawmakers.
The two parties, former rivals, formed a coalition after the ANC lost its majority in last year’s election.
But they’ve clashed on several issues, including equity laws, education, and the national budget, which the DA has delayed over concerns about corruption and wasteful spending.
President Ramaphosa fired a DA deputy minister for taking part in the U.S. trip without getting official permission.
Defending the visit, Powell said in a statement on Thursday, “As the ANC continues to engage with … the likes of Russia and Iran, the DA will continue to … engage with the international community of democracies.”
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Image Credit: Times Live
