Bozell suggests Mbeki could help break US-SA diplomatic impasse

US ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III has suggested that former president Thabo Mbeki could play a key role in breaking the growing diplomatic impasse between Pretoria and Washington.

Speaking to Business Day on Monday, Bozell described Mbeki as a veteran statesman and experienced negotiator with an understanding of international diplomacy and economic engagement at the highest level.

He argued that someone with Mbeki’s standing could help move negotiations towards practical agreements.

Bozell also expressed disappointment with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s handling of relations with Washington, saying the US had “run out of patience”.

The comments come amid increasingly strained relations between the two countries over trade, South Africa’s domestic policies and its international alignments.

Washington has also introduced targeted visa restrictions against South Africans it says are responsible for, or complicit in, policies involving race-based discrimination, land expropriation without compensation and incitement of violence. The US has not identified those who may be affected.

The dispute has also involved US tariffs on South African exports and Pretoria’s exclusion from US-hosted G20 proceedings. The US imposed a 30% tariff on South African goods in August 2025, while certain sectors face additional US tariffs.

Ramaphosa has appointed former apartheid-era negotiator Roelf Meyer as South Africa’s point man in Washington.

Alistair Ruiters, a special adviser to the president, rejected Bozell’s suggestion that Pretoria’s diplomatic efforts had failed, saying South Africa had repeatedly made concessions, including commitments relating to critical minerals and a review of aspects of its BEE framework.

The South African government has also rejected Washington’s characterisation of its land and transformation policies, arguing that such legislation addresses the country’s history of racial inequality and remains a sovereign matter.

Pretoria has maintained that the dispute should be resolved through constructive engagement between the two governments.

Bozell’s intervention follows an earlier meeting with Mbeki in Johannesburg in April, shortly after the ambassador arrived in South Africa, indicating that the two have already established a channel of engagement.

SOURCES: The Citizen, Channel African, & The Sowetan.