South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially received the new US ambassador, Brent Bozell, on Wednesday in a ceremony that highlighted both goodwill and the ongoing strains between the two countries.
The event took place at the Sefako Makgatho Presidential Guest House in Pretoria. Bozell, a 70-year-old right-wing media critic and strong supporter of President Donald Trump, arrived with his wife.
They were greeted with a guard of honour before he handed over his diplomatic credentials.In his remarks, Bozell spoke warmly about his new posting.
“Before I arrived here, so many people told me I’d fall in love with the country in no time,” he said. “Well, it’s only been two months, and I can already confirm that’s happened.”
He added that both nations share important values and interests, and he hoped to strengthen those ties during his time there.Ramaphosa, for his part, reminded diplomats of the importance of respecting South Africa’s sovereignty. He stressed that concerns should be raised through quiet, constructive conversations rather than public confrontations, saying this approach builds stronger relationships based on mutual respect.
Relations between Pretoria and Washington have been difficult for some time. Issues include South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, and Trump’s claims that white Afrikaners are facing persecution.
Bozell himself got off to a bumpy start after criticising South Africa’s racial policies and calling an old anti-apartheid chant “hate speech” in his first public speech.
That chant, “Kill the Boer, kill the farmer,” has been ruled by South African courts as not constituting hate speech when understood in the context of the fight against apartheid, which ended in 1994. Bozell later clarified that the US respects the independence of South Africa’s judiciary.
Tensions escalated last year when Washington expelled South Africa’s ambassador, Ebrahim Rasool, after he criticised Trump’s MAGA movement. The previous US ambassador resigned just before Trump took office.
Despite the challenges, the economic links remain strong. The United States is South Africa’s biggest trading partner on the African continent, with over 500 American companies and 30,000 US citizens living and working there.
Bozell is one of 20 new envoys who presented their credentials on the same day, including representatives from countries like Cuba and Haiti.The ceremony reflects a desire on both sides to keep communication channels open, even as deeper differences continue to test the relationship.