South Africa announced it will replace former ambassador to the United States Ebrahim Rasool with a special envoy, Mcebisi Jonas, who has a background as deputy finance minister.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio expelled Rasool weeks ago and gave him “persona non grata” status. It is a rare occurrence in U.S. history to expel such a high-ranking diplomat.
Jonas was previously an investment special envoy in 2018 and now is the non-executive chairman of the MTN Group, the largest mobile network operator in Africa. Jonas will keep his chairmanship throughout his term as special envoy. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa did not publicize an end date for the envoy’s term.
“In this capacity, Mr. Jonas is entrusted with the responsibility to advance South Africa’s diplomatic, trade and bilateral priorities. He will lead negotiations, foster strategic partnerships and engage with U.S. government officials and private-sector leaders to promote our nation’s interests,” Ramaphosa said in a statement.
“For decades, South Africa and the United States of America have maintained a historical and strategic relationship. In the interest of our country, our region and the rest of our continent, I remain committed to rebuilding and maintaining this relationship for more decades on the basis of mutual respect, recognition of each other’s sovereignty and benefit for our respective peoples,” Ramaphosa said.
The country has not nominated a replacement ambassador since Rasool’s online lecture to a South African think tank. During his comments, he criticized President Donald Trump and suggested the president’s “disrespect” for the “current hegemonic order” comes from white supremacy.
Tensions between the U.S. and South Africa have come to a head as the countries took sides in the conflict between Hamas and Israel. South Africa was behind the International Court of Justice case against Israel over the alleged genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
Since taking office, Trump publicly condemned South Africa’s Expropriation Act, which allows the confiscation of private property without reimbursement. The legislation allegedly targets white South African farmers. Already, the population has been subjected to murders as recently as 2020, which sparked riots and accusations that the murders were evidence of an attempted genocide. The murder of Brendin Horner in October of that year ended in the two suspects being acquitted due to a lack of evidence.
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Meanwhile, neighboring Zimbabwe began compensating its own white farmers who had their lands often violently seized from them last week. The country has paid $3.1 million so far, representing 1% of the total payout agreement of $311 million.
After Rasool left the U.S., the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, announced she was stepping down after three years in the role.
