PRETORIA, Wednesday 30 September 2026 — The United States has reaffirmed its demands on South Africa hours after Pretoria formally reprimanded US Ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III for what it described as “undiplomatic conduct”, signalling that Washington does not intend to retreat from the policy disputes driving relations between the two countries.
Responding to questions from SABC News following the démarche, a US State Department spokesperson said Washington was not interested in dialogue simply for the sake of maintaining talks and placed responsibility on the South African government to determine the future direction of the relationship.
The response represents the first substantive reaction from Washington since the Department of International Relations and Cooperation called Bozell in on Tuesday.
It offers little indication that Pretoria’s third formal reprimand of the ambassador has eased tensions between the two governments.
Washington says Pretoria must respond to Trump order
The State Department confirmed that Bozell had met South African officials to discuss bilateral relations but maintained that Pretoria still needed to respond to the concerns set out by US President Donald Trump.
Washington linked those concerns to Trump’s executive order on South Africa, which criticised the country’s land policies and foreign-policy positions, including its genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
The administration has subsequently escalated pressure through visa restrictions targeting people it accuses of responsibility for or complicity in policies enabling uncompensated land seizures, race-based discrimination or incitement of violence against minority groups.
Pretoria disputes Washington’s characterisation of South African policy and maintains that its transformation and land-reform measures are constitutional attempts to address inequalities inherited from apartheid.
South Africa has nevertheless said it remains willing to engage with Washington.
Bozell summoned for third time
DIRCO called Bozell in on Tuesday and delivered a formal diplomatic démarche over what a senior department official described as “undiplomatic conduct”.
It was the third démarche issued to Bozell since he began his duties in South Africa nine months ago, DIRCO told Reuters.
A démarche is a formal diplomatic representation or protest delivered by one government to another.
DIRCO did not publicly identify a single statement as the reason for Tuesday’s intervention.
The summons followed a series of public comments by Bozell criticising Pretoria’s response to Washington’s concerns and an opinion article in which the ambassador argued that the United States had waited months for meaningful action from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government.
Bozell has argued that Pretoria has made insufficient progress on a set of issues Washington has described as its “Five Asks”.
US pressure spans land, empowerment and rural crime
Washington’s demands have centred on South African domestic and foreign policy.
Among the issues raised by the Trump administration are land reform and private-property rights, Black Economic Empowerment requirements affecting American companies, rural crime and farm attacks, the “Kill the Boer” chant and the treatment of Afrikaners seeking refugee status in the United States.
Bozell has said there has been movement on some of the issues.
South Africa has said it will not obstruct the United States’ programme accepting Afrikaners for resettlement, although Pretoria disagrees with Washington’s claim that the community faces racial persecution.
The government has also pointed to ongoing court challenges concerning the Expropriation Act.
However, International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola has made clear that Pretoria does not intend to abandon its empowerment policies, land-reform programme or case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in response to US pressure.
Lamola said last week that relations with Washington had reached a “critically low point”, while maintaining that South Africa remained prepared to negotiate.
State Department response leaves little room for immediate reset
The State Department’s response on Wednesday indicates that Washington regards substantive movement on its demands, rather than continued diplomatic engagement alone, as the measure of progress.
That position contrasts with Pretoria’s insistence that disagreements should be managed through diplomacy while respecting South African sovereignty over domestic policy.
DIRCO said earlier that bilateral discussions remained under way despite Tuesday’s démarche.
A senior department official told Reuters that both governments remained committed to resolving outstanding issues.
Washington’s subsequent response suggests those discussions will continue without either side having substantially shifted its underlying position.
Relations under sustained pressure
Relations between Pretoria and Washington have deteriorated across several fronts during the Trump administration.
The disputes include South Africa’s land and transformation policies, its International Court of Justice case against Israel, Washington’s Afrikaner refugee programme and the United States’ criticism of South Africa’s relationships with countries it regards as strategic adversaries.
The US has increasingly used policy measures, including visa restrictions, to pressure Pretoria.
South Africa has responded by defending its constitutional framework and rejecting what it regards as external interference in domestic policy.
Bozell’s repeated summonses have now become another feature of that strained relationship.
He was first called in shortly after taking up his post following comments about the “Kill the Boer” chant and South African court decisions.
The latest démarche is the third formal intervention involving the ambassador in nine months.
Wednesday evening’s State Department response makes clear that Washington does not regard Pretoria’s latest reprimand as a reason to modify its demands.
