US expels South African ambassador

"The South African ambassador to the United States is no longer welcome in our great country," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on social network X on March 14. According to Mr. Rubio, ambassador Ebrahim Rasool is a politician who incites racial issues and hates the US and President Trump.

South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool speaks at the South African Embassy in Washington DC in 2013

Mr. Rubio linked to an article on the conservative news site Breitbart , which said Mr. Rasool had made "touchy-feely" comments about President Donald Trump on racial issues.

"We have nothing to discuss with him and therefore he is considered persona non grata," Mr. Rubio wrote. The reaction of the South African ambassador is unclear. Mr. Rasool presented his credentials to the White House leader to begin his term as ambassador on January 13 when Mr. Joe Biden was still president.

The expulsion of an ambassador is a rare move in the US, according to AFP. This is the latest development in growing tensions between the US and South Africa.

In February, President Trump froze US aid to South Africa because of a law that allowed the confiscation of land from white farmers and because of South Africa's International Court of Justice (ICJ) lawsuit against Israel over the conflict in the Gaza Strip.

Last week, Mr Trump said South African farmers were welcome in the US and criticised the Pretoria government for confiscating land from white people.

"Any farmer (and family) from South Africa, who wishes to leave the country for safety reasons, will be invited to enter the United States with a fast track to citizenship," Mr. Trump wrote on the social network Truth Social.

Land ownership is a sensitive issue in South Africa, and the government is under pressure to reform. At a conference last month, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he had a great phone call with President Trump after the US leader took office in January. However, relations have since “gone a little bit off track,” according to Ramaphosa.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/my-truc-xuat-dai-su-nam-phi-185250315083146603.htm