South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday welcomed the new US ambassador, Brent Bozell, as diplomatic tensions between the two nations remain strained over policy disagreements and recent public remarks.
Bozell, a conservative media critic and long-time supporter of former US President Donald Trump, presented his credentials in a brief ceremony at the Sefako Makgatho Presidential Guest House in Pretoria. He was joined by his spouse and received a guard of honour before meeting with Ramaphosa.
“I cannot tell you how many people told me that in short order, I’d fall in love with the country. It’s only taken two months and I can confirm that has happened,” Bozell said, adding that he aims to strengthen ties based on shared values and mutual interests.
The envoy’s arrival follows a rocky start, after he labelled an apartheid-era chant, “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer,” as “hate speech” and criticised South Africa’s racial empowerment policies in his first public remarks. While South African courts have ruled the chant does not constitute hate speech, citing its historical context in the anti-apartheid struggle, Bozell later clarified that the US respects the independence of South Africa’s judiciary.
Nineteen other envoys, including representatives from the partially recognised Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Haiti, and Cuba, also presented their credentials.
Ramaphosa stressed the importance of diplomatic discretion, urging new envoys to raise concerns through private, constructive dialogue rather than public confrontation. “It is this approach that I believe builds strong relationships between nations and helps to advance the interests of our respective countries based on mutual respect,” he said.
Relations between Pretoria and Washington have deteriorated over several issues, including South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice and disputed US claims that white Afrikaners face persecution. In March last year, Washington expelled South Africa’s ambassador, Ebrahim Rasool, after he criticised Trump’s Make America Great Again movement. A replacement has yet to be named.
The previous US ambassador, Reuben Brigety, resigned in November 2024, shortly before Trump’s return to office.
Despite the diplomatic tensions, South Africa remains the United States’ largest trading partner in Africa, hosting more than 500 US businesses and 30,000 American citizens.
