The United States has declared South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool “no longer welcome” in the country. The decision, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, marks an escalation in strained relations between Washington and Pretoria.
Rubio, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), accused Rasool of harboring anti-American sentiments and opposing President Donald Trump. He further described the ambassador as a “race-baiting politician,” stating that the US had “nothing to discuss with him.”
The announcement follows a Breitbart article citing Rasool’s recent online lecture, where he criticized Trump’s policies. Rasool asserted that Trump had mobilized “supremacism” against established powers both domestically and internationally. He also noted demographic shifts in the US, highlighting that the electorate was projected to become 48% white, a statistic that he suggested fueled the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) movement.
The South African embassy in Washington, DC, has yet to issue an official response. However, the expulsion of a senior diplomat is a highly unusual measure in international relations. The Associated Press noted that such actions were rare, even during the Cold War between the US and the former Soviet Union.
US-South Africa relations have been deteriorating since Trump assumed office. Last month, President Trump signed an executive order freezing assistance to South Africa. The order cited “egregious actions” by the South African government, specifically referencing the Expropriation Act, which the US claims enables land seizures targeting white Afrikaners.
The White House fact sheet also accused South Africa of “blatantly discriminating against ethnic minority descendants of settler groups” and supporting “bad actors on the world stage.” In response, the South African government has denied that the Expropriation Act is racially motivated.
Rasool, who previously served as South Africa’s ambassador to the US from 2010 to 2015, was reappointed in 2025. Born and raised in Cape Town, he was forcibly removed from his home at the age of nine due to apartheid-era policies. He has often cited this experience as shaping his political ideology.
The diplomatic fallout raises questions about the future of US-South Africa relations, with analysts predicting further tensions in trade and diplomatic engagements.
