EU-South Africa summit defies Trump Administration

Senior officials from the European Union (EU) met in Cape Town on Thursday with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the first summit between the two sides since 2018.

Headed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa, the meeting whose main objective is to boost trade and diplomatic relations between the EU and South Africa, its largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa, comes against a backdrop of global tensions, and amid a confrontational foreign policy of the Administration of US President Donald Trump.

In an X post, von der Leyen announced a new €4.7 billion Global Gateway investment package for South Africa. "For projects that support a just energy transition. For connectivity – both physical and digital. And for vaccines, produced in Africa, for Africa"

The EU, a 27-nation bloc, seeks to cement its alliance with South Africa after announcing retaliatory tariffs against Washington, in response to new levies imposed by Trump on steel and aluminum.

Republican administration very firm on South Africa

Last month, Trump signed an executive order that eliminated all US funding to South Africa, accusing the country of human rights violations against a white minority and of backing international actors such as Hamas and Iran, which he called "bad actors."

For his part,Secretary of State Marco Rubio also failed to attend a meeting of G20 foreign ministers in South Africa last month and had already confirmed he will also not participate in the main November summit in Johannesburg, reflecting Washington's disinterest in the European bloc's agenda.