JOHANNESBURG – President Cyril Ramaphosa has voiced South Africa’s opposition to the United States military operation against deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, as divisions emerged within the national government of unity (GNU) over the country’s reaction.
The US strike on Caracas and capture of Maduro on Saturday stunned the world, drawing praise and condemnation from Washington allies and foes alike.
Speaking in front of a Venezuelan flag at a commemoration for a late anti-apartheid activist on Tuesday, Ramaphosa said South Africa was concerned by US aggression and demanded the release of the deposed leader and his wife.
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“We reject utterly the actions that the United States has embarked upon and stand with the people of Venezuela,” Ramaphosa said, urging “decisive action” from the United Nations Security Council.
Government parties clash over response
Parties within the GNU reacted differently, with some accusing Ramaphosa’s ANC of presenting its strong condemnation as the national response.
Earlier on Tuesday, the ANC called on “progressive forces” to “mobilise against the American imperialist aggression”.
However, the second-largest party in the unity government, the Democratic Alliance, accused the ANC of inconsistency and hypocrisy for failing to take a similar stance on Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The DA said a foreign ministry statement critical of the US action showed the department had been “politicised to pursue party political interests instead of pursuing foreign policy in the national interest”.
The Freedom Front Plus also criticised the foreign ministry’s statement as “unilateral ANC action” and welcomed the toppling of Maduro, calling it “the end of the socialist failure”.
US-SA relations under strain
South Africa is under pressure from the Trump administration over a range of policy differences, with relations plummeting last year and Pretoria seeking to avoid US trade tariffs of 30 percent.
Washington boycotted the G20 summit in South Africa in November and has barred Pretoria’s participation under its own presidency of the group of leading economies.
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Pretoria and Washington have fallen out over issues including South Africa’s case accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza at the International Court of Justice.
President Donald Trump has accused South Africa of alleged discrimination—and even “genocide”—of minority white Afrikaners and invited them to move to the United States.
Economic risks warned
William Gumede, professor of public management at the University of the Witwatersrand, said the ANC was misreading Trump and its leaders risked sanctions from Washington.
“We are now in a period of might is right. The countries most powerful can essentially do what they want to do,” he said.
“If Trump now turns against South Africa, it will crash South Africa’s economy,” he said, urging the country to be more strategic about its relations with Washington.
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