South Africa Criticizes US Refugee Policy Prioritizing White Afrikaners Amid Diplomatic Strain

The South African government has strongly condemned the U.S. refugee policy under President Trump that prioritizes Afrikaners, the country's white minority, within a sharply reduced refugee admissions cap of 7,500. South African officials refute claims of a "white genocide," describing the narrative as widely discredited, unsupported by evidence, and rejected by prominent Afrikaners themselves. The government criticized the policy as based on false assumptions, conflating voluntary migration with refugee asylum, which undermines South Africa's constitutional framework and international protection systems. This move has further strained diplomatic relations, compounded by the suspension of U.S. financial aid and high tariffs on South African exports. Many Afrikaners have publicly opposed the special refugee status based on race, emphasizing that humanitarian policies should prioritize vulnerability over race. Pretoria calls on the U.S. to base its foreign policy on facts rather than political misinformation, highlighting that violent crime affects all racial groups equally in South Africa.