Africa-Press – South-Africa. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is poised to tap veteran political negotiator Roelf Meyer as the country’s next envoy to the US, as Pretoria seeks to steady relations with Washington after a turbulent year.
Meyer, 78, would replace Ebrahim Rasool as ambassador, said the people who asked not to be identified as the information isn’t public. Presidency spokesman Vincent Magwenya wasn’t immediately available to comment.
Meyer said he had no knowledge of the appointment, when Bloomberg contacted him by phone on Tuesday.
Meyer, a White Afrikaner who served as constitutional affairs minister during the apartheid era, is widely regarded as one of the architects of South Africa’s democratic transition alongside Ramaphosa.
He played a central role in negotiations that led to the end of White-minority rule, working closely with leaders of Ramaphosa’s African National Congress to broker a settlement.
Ties between Pretoria and Washington have been strained since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January 2025.
Tensions escalated over Trump’s repeated, unsubstantiated claims that South Africa is persecuting White farmers and seizing their land.
The US government declared Rasool persona non grata in 2025, after he described Trump’s supporters as part of a “supremacist movement.”
Last week, Ramaphosa accepted the credentials of newly appointed US envoy Leo Brent Bozell, signaling a potential reset in diplomatic ties.
Bozell met Meyer in March, when the US envoy said he was “privileged” to learn more about his role in South Africa’s democracy.
“A privilege to meet Roelf Meyer today and learn more about the work he did to help create South Africa’s democracy. Our countries share a commitment to dialogue, democratic values, and working together to address today’s challenges,” Bozell said in a social media post.
Zane Dangor, the director-general of South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation, said on Monday that Ramaphosa had made a decision on who will be the next ambassador to Washington, without identifying the nominee.
“It will be the kind of person who I think is ideally suited for the environment,” Dangor was quoted as saying by Daily Maverick.
Meyer currently serves as a director of the In Transformation Initiative, a non-profit that he helped found that promotes democratic transitions and conflict resolution.
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