Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday (September 15, 2026) the U.S. government was announcing a new visa restriction policy targeting some foreign nationals in South Africa.
Relations between Washington and Pretoria have soured since the start of Donald Trump’s second term, with the U.S. president criticizing the country for its policies aimed at addressing racial inequality.
The policy targets “foreign nationals who are responsible for, or complicit in, the enactment or implementation of laws or policies that enable uncompensated land seizures, race-based discrimination, and/or the incitement of imminent violence against members of minority ethnic or racial groups in South Africa,” Mr. Rubio said in a statement. “The South African government has not adequately addressed the previously laid out concerns,” Mr. Rubio said. Earlier reporting noted: The new restrictions target South Africans who “enable uncompensated land seizures, race-based discrimination, and/or the incitement of imminent violence against members of minority ethnic or racial groups,” the US State Department said.
Earlier reporting noted: The United States on Tuesday announced new restrictions on visas for South Africans, after President Donald Trump repeatedly clashed with the country’s leaders over its post-apartheid racial justice policies.
