US lawmakers drop call for review of South Africa relations

Ana Monteiro, Bloomberg News on Dec 24, 2024

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U.S. lawmakers dropped a potential review of South Africa’s ties with Washington on the basis that they pose national-security risks.

President Joe Biden on Monday signed a version of a key annual defense-policy bill that didn’t contain an earlier amendment passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in June that sought the review.

Two congressmen introduced a bipartisan bill to the House in February, criticizing a series of foreign-policy positions taken by South Africa, including its case before the United Nations’ International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide. The proposed bill added to criticism by U.S. lawmakers last year of Pretoria’s refusal to back the Western stance on Russia’s war with Ukraine, and its deepening relationship with the BRICS economic bloc.

South Africa maintains that while it may have opposing positions to the U.S. on geopolitical issues, ties between the two nations remain strong. The U.S. is the country’s largest trading partner after China.

The U.S. this weekend said South Africa will retain its preferential access to the world’s biggest economy in 2025 for thousands of products. Maintaining a favorable commercial relationship is key to the newly formed South African coalition government’s efforts to bolster an economy that’s barely grown over the past decade.

After undertaking an annual review of which nations are allowed to enjoy duty-free under its African Growth and Opportunity Act, Washington left its list of eligible and ineligible nations unchanged for next year, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a statement.

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