PREVIEW
The hostility of the Trump presidency towards Ramaphosa’s government, has given Europe an opportunity to strengthen its ties with Pretoria
EU High Representative on Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas will hold talks with President Cyril Ramaphosa and ministers on 19 February, ahead of a G20 foreign ministers meeting the next day and an EU-South Africa summit in March (AC Vol 66 No 4, Ramaphosa’s G20 and growth plans sideline Trump threats over funding).
The hostility of Donald Trump’s United States presidency towards Ramaphosa’s government, including the suspension of all aid programmes in the country, appears to have been grasped as an opportunity by Brussels (Dispatches 5/2/25, Trump wages economic war over land bill).
Last year, EU officials were concerned by Ramaphosa’s reluctance to set a date for an overdue bilateral summit and by South Africa’s relationships with Russia and China.
However, EU officials confirmed last week that the summit will be held on 13 March in South Africa, days after senior officials, led by European Council President António Costa offered ‘full support’ for South Africa’s G20 presidency, which the Trump administration has threatened to boycott.
The Commission is expected to announce a series of new investments in energy projects as part of South Africa’s Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) an US$8.5 billion programme, to which the EU is a signatory, designed to finance South Africa’s move away from coal dependency to cleaner energy.
Green hydrogen projects are likely to be the primary recipients of EU funding. Last year, the Commission announced investments in Namibia’s green hydrogen sector, which it is keen to support as the EU diversifies its own long-term energy supply.
The EU Commission has also completed an evaluation of the economic partnership agreement between the EU and the Southern Africa Development Community, which has been criticised by Pretoria and other members of the 16-country regional bloc, although its reform is unlikely to be on the agenda in March.
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