South Africa will host a U.S.-Africa trade summit in November despite an earlier call by U.S. lawmakers for the event to be moved over what they said was the country’s deepening military relationship with Russia.
South Africa’s economic hub, Johannesburg, will host the U.S.-sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum from Nov. 2 to 4, U.S. and South African officials said in a joint statement on Wednesday.
The meeting will discuss the future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), Washington’s flagship trade programme for the continent, which grants tariff-free access to the U.S. market and is due to expire on Sept. 30, 2025.
“As President Biden has said, the future is Africa,” United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in the statement. Tai said she looked forward to visiting South Africa to “discuss opportunities to make AGOA more transformative”.
In the wake of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, U.S. and European officials have attempted to rally opposition to Moscow’s actions among African governments. Most African states, however, have shied away from taking sides.
Despite Pretoria’s declared neutrality, perceived close ties between Russia and South Africa, an important U.S. trading partner in Africa, have ruffled feathers Washington.
Source: reuters.com
