Trump Confronts South African President In Oval Office Over White Farmer Genocide

President Donald Trump defended Afrikaner farmers during an Oval Office meeting today with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, playing a video of alleged incitements to violence after Ramaphosa rejected claims of a white genocide.

The video included a clip of Julius Malema, a member of South Africa’s National Assembly, singing “Kill the Boer” at a political rally, a reference to Afrikaners.

While the video played, Ramaphosa looked away from the screen, visibly uncomfortable, while Trump looked straight on.

President Trump directly accused South African President Cyril Ramaphosa of an Afrikaner genocide.

When Ramaphosa denied the claim, Trump played a video showing anti-Afrikaner speeches and footage of white farmers' burial sites. pic.twitter.com/IgDXz1vJKQ

— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) May 21, 2025

The video also included footage of what Trump claimed was the gravesite of 1,000 Afrikaner farmers.

Ramaphosa said he had never seen the site but “would like to know where that is.”

Trump also held up articles that he said showed proof of the genocide against Afrikaners.

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“I don’t know how it can get any worse,” Trump said.

Ramaphosa responded to Trump, raising concerns about the “Kill the Boer” chant, claiming that it was said by a minority party and was not representative of the government.

“When they take the land, they kill the white farmer, and when they kill the white farmer, nothing happens to them,” Trump said. 

President Trump arguing with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa about the genocide of White farmers.

"The farmers are not black,” Trump said. pic.twitter.com/3kt5vbAIUc

— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) May 21, 2025

Ramaphosa responded, claiming that black people are also killed by criminals in the country.

“The farmers are not black,” Trump said. “The people that are being killed in large numbers, and you saw those grave sites and those are people that loved ones are going on a Sunday morning they told me to pay their respects to their loved ones that were killed. Their heads chopped off. They died violently.”

Ramaphosa, being diplomatic, asked to discuss the “criminality” issues in South Africa outside of the media and encouraged American partnership in addressing them.

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The meeting comes amid controversy over the Trump administration welcoming Afrikaner refugees to the United States, alleging they are the victims of a race-based genocide. 

Tensions between the two countries have increased following the passage of South Africa’s Expropriation Act, which allows the South African government to confiscate land without compensation.

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Trump issued an executive order in February saying the act ignored citizens’ rights and enabled the government to “seize ethnic minority Afrikaners’ agricultural property without compensation.” The directive cut aid or assistance to South Africa and declared that the United States would promote resettling Afrikaner refugees.

Ramaphosa denied that Afrikaner land is being taken away during the meeting. He pointed to his South African Agriculture Minister, John Steenhuisen, who is white, and claimed that the majority of white farmers want to stay. 

Steenhuisen said he joined Ramaphosa’s coalition government as an opposition party to keep the anti-white politicians out of power in South Africa.

“Why wouldn’t you arrest that man?” Trump asked, pointing out that Malema was inciting violence by calling for white people to be killed.

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The Trump administration accepted 59 farmers who arrived in the United States on a chartered flight earlier this month through an expedited program. Democrats have denied that Afrikaners are being persecuted for their race and have criticized the Trump administration for resettling the refugees in the United States.

Trump pushed back on those criticisms last week, saying the refugees “happen to be white, but whether they’re white or black makes no difference to me.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio doubled down on the Trump administration’s belief that Afrikaners are being persecuted during a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

“These are people whose farms were burned down and they were killed because of the color of their skin,” Rubio said in a heated exchange with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA).

Rubio added that the farmers qualify for refugee status because they “live in a country where farms are taken and land is taken on a racial basis.”