Israel ‘genocide’ case at ICJ: SA-US trade relations ‘unlikely to be affected'
Professor Anthoni van Nieuwkerk says while the United States might be Israel's closest ally, South Africa’s lawsuit at the UN’s top court is unlikely to impact trade relations between the two countries.
Van Nieuwkerk has been commenting on the possible diplomatic ramifications of South Africa’s case against Israel.
The two-day hearing against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to start on Thursday, where South Africa will ask the ICJ to consider an immediate ceasefire to the fighting between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Israel has been at war in Gaza since the attacks of October 7 when Hamas militants stormed across the border, killing more than 23,000 Palestinians to date.
Van Nieuwkerk believes the US is likely to take a pragmatic view, despite the remarks by Secretary of State Antony Blinken labelling the case “unhelpful” and “galling”.
"Those who participate in global politics are quite pragmatic, and so as we struggle to maintain a good relationship with the United States as they embarrassed our government last year, at the same time, we maintain a trade relationship with the Americans, even though we disagree with them politically. The same with the Europeans, the Germans and the British, very powerful trade partners. We might disagree with them politically even more after this particular court case, but I think that the trade relationship will continue; we won't lose too much."
He adds that while South Africa has been lauded for its decision to challenge Israel, it is likely to lose some friends in the West.
"There is a very powerful Jewish lobby in capitals of the western world saying, 'work with us, support us, we are suffering Hamas attacked us, we didn't attack them, this is not fair', and those countries in the Global North are lining up with Israel and against South Africa. So, what could possibly happen is that South Africa can lose some of its supporters and allies in the West and pick up support from the East and the South.
"Is this a good or a bad thing? If you can put on your trade or economics cap, then some of the countries that we do business with, we might lose them, and that will impact our economy."
Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola and the South African delegation left on Tuesday for the Peace Palace, which houses the United Nations International Court of Justice in the Hague.
Joining the South African delegation at the International Court of Justice will be senior political figures from progressive political parties and movements across the globe, which include Jeremy Corbyn, the former leader of the Labour Party in the United Kingdom.
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