US ambassador to SA finally shook the right hand
The US and South Africa have had a frosty relationship under the Trump regime, but a recent hour-long meeting might signal the coming of a better understanding between the two nations.
The United States ambassador to South Africa, Brent Bozell, recently met with Firoz Cachalia, the acting police minister, to discuss rural crime and ways to combat violence threatening the farming community. This meeting is seen as a breakthrough in the often frosty relationship between the two nations under the Trump regime. In the past 18 months, the relationship has predominantly run in one direction - the US has listed demands on Pretoria and initiated a refugee programme.
The White House claims that the violent crime in South Africa is extreme and mostly caused by arguments, road rage, revenge, and robbery. However, the South African Police Service attributes the majority of these killings to other factors. The meeting between Bozell and Cachalia is the first US move aimed at addressing the actual problem of police service failure, rather than implementing a refugee pipeline that addresses a symptom but not the root cause.
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