Ramaphosa endures humiliation

But he secured tentative trade talks as negotiations with officials on a pact between South Africa and the US were set to continue

- Emsie Ferreira

President Cyril Ramaphosa left Washington this week with a commitment to further trade talks with the US — the reward for enduring an Oval Office ambush in which President Donald Trump accused him of enabling ethnic mass murder.

"There will continue to be engagement between South Africa and United States officials, particularly at the trade and industry level, to deal with the package of issues that we had tabled that had to do with trade and investment," a visibly tired Ramaphosa said after two hours of talks with Trump.

"So, I was rather pleased that there is a firm agreement and undertaking that we are going to continue engaging. So there is no disengagement. For us, that was one of the key outcomes that we had wanted."

A member of the delegation to Washington told the Mail & Guardian that South African officials would meet representatives of the office of Trade Representative Jamie Greer in Washington on Friday to discuss the trade proposals prepared by a ministerial team over the past two months.

"It is significant because it is an immediate continuation of the engagement at the White House.

"There will be a further exchange of information and we hope that it will mark the formalisation of a process that will, over a number of months, lead to an agreement that resets trade relations."

He added that the Trump administration had expressed a keen interest in access to rare minerals — it already imports significant quantities of platinum group minerals — and had asked for further details as to what "South Africa wants out of the deal from our side".

"Obviously we will engage on the goods that we currently export to the United States, including agricultural produce, and seek to expand trade but we want to do so in a manner that entrenches mutual interest."