Johannesburg – ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says ongoing criticism from the US shows South Africa must strengthen trade relations with other global partners.
Speaking at the ANC Greater Johannesburg regional conference, he stressed that South Africa will not abandon its principles of sovereignty, multilateralism and peace despite pressure from Washington.
“The United States has embarked on a concerted effort to isolate us. We have been targeted by the Trump administration for imperialist reasons. They want us to forsake our sovereignty, they not treating us an equal country but one of their substrates.
[WATCH DOORSTOP] The United States has embarked on a concerted effort to isolate us. We have been targeted by the Trump administration for imperialist reasons. They want us to forsake our sovereignty, they not treating us an equal country but one of their substates.
They… pic.twitter.com/XqPgjrOmeh
— ANC SECRETARY GENERAL | Fikile Mbalula (@MbalulaFikile) December 4, 2025
“They boycotted our G20 for no reason. Black and whites have made it clear that there is no genocide taking place in South Africa. They are on a misinformation rampage,” said Mbalula.
This follows escalating tensions, including the US decision to exclude South Africa from the 2026 G20 Summit in Miami and repeated attacks from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who accuses the ANC government of harming white minorities and damaging the economy.
Mbalula called these remarks an assault on South Africa’s independence and labelled the Trump administration “aggressors”, comparing the treatment of South Africa to the decades-long US embargo on Cuba.
He insisted that South Africa is not an extension of the US and will continue asserting its sovereignty.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
