South Africa’s president courted business leaders during a two-day state visit to Brazil aimed at bolstering trade ties with Latin America’s biggest economy amid upheaval sparked by US tariffs and the Iran war.
President Cyril Ramaphosa called for the expansion of a trade agreement between southern African countries and a Latin American bloc comprising Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay. He said he wants to position South Africa as “Brazil’s gateway into African markets.”
Brasília and Pretoria have each been the target of President Donald Trump’s wrath: He imposed steep tariffs on Brazil over what he said was the unfair prosecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro, his political ally. Though levies were later lowered, the risk was sufficient for Brasília to seek partners elsewhere. Trump also increased tariffs on South Africa, which he has accused of discrimination against white South Africans, claims that have been widely discredited.
Ramaphosa’s visit comes as fears grow that the Middle East conflict may force Pretoria to reassess the budget announced three days before the US and Israel launched strikes on Tehran.