FF Plus leader denies US trip 'was to complain'

FF Plus leader denies US trip 'was to complain'

Freedom Front Plus leader Corné Mulder says their recent US visit was not to complain but to express concern and explore solutions to South Africa’s challenges. 

Freedom Front Plus leader Corne Mulder in US
X: @MulderCorn


Mulder says the delegation aimed to promote national prosperity and conveyed that the Trump administration has set four non-negotiable conditions to reset relations between South Africa and the US. 


During President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent visit to the Oval Office, President Donald Trump ambushed Ramaphosa by playing a video that he claimed proved genocide is being committed against white people in South Africa.


The video, which contained several falsehoods and inaccuracies, was intended to back Trump's offer of "refuge" to persecuted white farmers, which has angered the South African government, which disputes the allegations.


Trump's administration this month granted refugee status to more than 50 white Afrikaners, even though it has effectively stopped taking asylum seekers from the rest of the world.


Ties between the two nations nosedived after Trump took office in January, with the US leader threatening high trade tariffs and expelling the South African ambassador.


But the South African presidency statement said that after the talks, Ramaphosa "welcomed the expected commencement of trade talks between South Africa and the United States through their respective trade negotiations teams".


Speaking on his return from the US on Wednesday, Mulder highlighted trade barriers and non-tariff issues that need urgent attention for bilateral success.


“One of the important things that we came with was that they are concerned that the things that they put on the table are either not taken seriously or are not being heard. So, one will make a huge mistake to just think it's about this, that, and the other,” he said. 


“We can’t just quickly sit down and have a claim deal. From the Trump administration's point of view, there are certain non-tariff barriers.” 


*Additional reporting by AFP 


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