South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday in an attempt to worsen relations between the two countries.

A major argument between the two leaders is the death of South Africa's recent passing of a land acquisition law, which Trump condemned and said was related to the "persecution" of the country's wealthy white minority.

Last week, the first group of South African “refugees” landed in the United States as part of a group’s larger relocation plan under the Trump administration. The South African government denies allegations of persecution or “white genocide” in the country.

Here is what you need to know about the law:

What is the method of expropriation?

President Ramaphosa signed the bill in January after months of debate in Parliament due to opposition from the Democratic League (DA) party, which is part of the coalition government.

The law allows the government to seize land from any private owner (white or elsewhere) for public purposes and public interest, including infrastructure projects, public service expansion, environmental protection, land reform or fair resource allocation purposes.

Although fair compensation is clarified by law, in some cases, the law also allows for free seizures.

It replaced the 1975 expropriation law drafted under apartheid and was criticized for not having a clear compensation plan.

However, some Afrikaan groups say the new law could be forfeited, perhaps violently, and it could reduce the value of the property. DA is a former opposition party to the African National Congress (ANC) of Ramaphosa and is largely seen as representing the interests of whites and Afrikaans.

White Afrikaners were descendants of predominantly Dutch colonists, and until 1990 they had controlled the country under apartheid system, which segregated and excluded black majority. Many of the country's most successful business leaders and farm owners are still white.

Although only 7% of the population, white South Africans also share 70% of the country's land.

Meanwhile, more than half of the black population is classified as poverty. Only a few people can enter the land. The Ramaphosa government said the new law would help the government redistribute land to several historically marginalized groups such as blacks, women and people with disabilities.

Ramaphosa's office said in a statement in February that the law is not a "forfeiture" tool, but a necessary policy to evenly distribute wealth. Confiscation means land seizure as punishment.

"The recently adopted expropriation law is not a means of forfeiture, but a constitutional legal process to ensure that the public receives constitutional guidance in a fair and impartial manner."

"Like the United States and other countries, South Africa has always had expropriation laws that balance public demand for land use and protection of property owner rights," the office said.

By mid-May, the South African government, which had no compensation under the new law, forced the land to take over.

What does Trump and his allies say about the law?

In February, Trump ordered the cuts to South Africa in exchange for "unfair racial discrimination" in the country. Trump cited under his order the alleged confiscation of white land and the genocide case filed by South Africa in December 2023 against Israel's war against Israel on Gaza.

“In a shocking disregard for its civil rights, the Republic of South Africa (South Africa) recently enacted Volume 13 (Act) of 2024, enabling the South African government to seize the South African government without compensation, and seize agricultural property of a few Dutch people without compensation.”

"The United States cannot support the South African government in its country or its undermine U.S. foreign policy, which poses a national security threat to our country, our allies, our African partners and our interests," Trump added.

Prior to this, the United States provided HIV assistance to South Africa through the president's AIDS relief or PEPFAR initiative. That aid had stopped when Trump suspended U.S. foreign aid globally in January.

Trump ally and South African-born entrepreneur Elon Musk is also highly criticized by land law and is believed by some experts to be affecting Trump administration policies targeting the country.

Musk accused the South African government of taking little action to stop “genocide” against white farmers. He also criticized the “racist ownership law” because his satellite internet business, Starlink, failed to launch in the country. South African law requires large businesses and those seeking government partnerships to be owned in part by marginalized groups.

What other tensions are there between the two countries?

Trump also highlighted the allegations of a group of South Africans who said white farmers were facing disproportionate violent attacks on the farm, which they said was “genocide.”

Ramaphosa's government denied the allegations and said the death of farmers was part of a larger crime problem. Farm attacks and murders are common in the country due to the remoteness of the farm. Both white and black farmers were attacked, robbery and murdered. The South African government does not publish data on racially specific crimes.

The Gaza issue is also a tense issue. The South African government filed an International Court of Justice case against Israel on December 29, 2023, accusing it of “genocide” in the attack on Gaza, an ally and major arms supplier to the United States.