South Africa will continue engaging with the US despite new visa restrictions imposed by Washington, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said, insisting Pretoria will defend its sovereignty and dignity in negotiations.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the targeted restrictions last week against foreign nationals whom Washington says are responsible for, or complicit in, policies involving uncompensated land seizures, race-based discrimination and the incitement of violence against minority groups in South Africa. No individuals were named when the policy was announced.
Ramaphosa was speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the ANC Veterans League fundraising golf day at the Johannesburg Country Club in Woodmead on Monday. He said the government had taken note of the restrictions but remained prepared to engage with Washington. ”We are quite willing and prepared to continue engaging with the United States as we engage with all other countries in the world,” the president noted.
”Where there are challenges, we will go in with our dignity, with our sovereignty to engage with those countries without bowing our heads and treating those nations respectfully and expecting them to treat us also respectfully,” Ramaphosa added.
The president said the US remained an important market for South Africa and that both countries had products they needed from each other. He also said discussions between South Africa and the US had been under way for some time, including on trade and tariff issues. The US had also raised ”the so-called five issues”, and South Africa had responded to a number of them, he stressed.
Asked what had happened to the discussions, given the latest announcement, Ramaphosa answered he could not explain what had prompted the move. ”So I just don’t know what happened. Only they can answer and say what exactly happened,” he said.
Ramaphosa noted South Africa remained willing to negotiate with the US to resolve the challenges in the relationship. ”We also trade with them and there are certain things or products that they need from us that we also need from them,” he said. ”So that in itself should bring about the state of equilibrium. So as we deal with each other, as states that respect each other, we will find solutions.”