South Africa must repair strained US relationship, Roelf Meyer says

President Cyril Ramaphosa and South African ambassador to the US Roelf Meyer. (Photo by Gallo Images/Frennie Shivambu)

South Africa’s ambassador to the United States (US), Roelf Meyer, says Pretoria must repair its relationship with Washington, warning that the current state of affairs cannot continue as tensions persist between the two countries.

Speaking at the launch of his political memoir at the Cape Town Press Club on Monday, Meyer described the US as a critical partner for South Africa and said restoring the relationship was one of his key responsibilities as ambassador.

Meyer said that despite tensions with the Trump administration, his goal was to ease them.

“Why is it important that we have good relations with the United States? It’s because it’s the biggest economy on earth, as a starting point.”

Meyer, who had just returned from Washington ahead of the event, said his long association with the US had reinforced the importance of maintaining strong ties between the two countries.

Tensions between Washington and Pretoria escalated recently after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced new visa restrictions targeting foreign nationals accused of involvement in race‑based discrimination and uncompensated land seizures in South Africa.

US President Donald Trump has singled out South Africa on several issues since he returned to the White House, notably making debunked claims of white Afrikaners being systematically “killed and slaughtered” in the country.

Meyer said he had visited the US dozens of times over more than four decades and had come to understand the relationship’s significance for South Africa.

Meyer acknowledged that relations between Pretoria and Washington are under pressure, describing the situation as requiring urgent attention from both sides.

“There is at the moment, unfortunately, a tension. The relationship is strained, everybody knows it, and we have to work and find ways to get out of this.”

The veteran politician and former chief negotiator in South Africa’s democratic transition said assigning blame would not help resolve the challenges facing the two countries.

“I’m not going to put blame anywhere; it’s not necessary. I have a job to do, and that is to make sure that we restore the relationship in the best possible way and as quickly as we can.”

Meyer said the relationship extends beyond politics and diplomacy, arguing that it has direct implications for South Africa’s economic growth, investment prospects and employment opportunities.

According to Meyer, economic cooperation remains one of the most important pillars of the bilateral relationship.

He noted that more than 600 American companies do business in South Africa, supporting investment and job creation.

“Our job is to create jobs in South Africa. That is ultimately what it is about.”

Meyer said South Africa must focus on improving both its political and trade relationship with the United States.

“If we have to improve the relationships at the trade level, it’s necessary, but also at the political level. We can’t go on like this.”

He added that he was prepared to play whatever role was necessary to help improve the relationship.

“Whether there’s persuasion necessary on the US side or on the South African side, I will be the messenger to try and make it happen.”

While discussing his memoir, Meyer reflected on South Africa’s transition from apartheid to democracy and the lessons he believes remain relevant today.

“One success of the transfer from the old to the new, the transition from apartheid to democracy, is the fact that we succeeded in keeping the middle ground together.”

He described a key turning point in the negotiations as the moment leaders stopped focusing on preserving the past and began concentrating on the future.

“What is it that we want from the future instead of what is it that we want to protect from the past?”

Meyer also highlighted the importance of South Africa’s constitutional democracy, describing the constitution as the country’s ultimate foundation.

“the president is not the most important factor in this country. The Executive isn’t, Parliament isn’t; it’s the constitution. And there’s only one adjudicator, and that is the Constitutional Court.”

He said the supremacy of the constitution remains one of the most significant achievements of South Africa’s democratic transition and a cornerstone of the country’s political system.

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