South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will begin a state visit to the United States on Monday as an attempt to "reset" relations between the two countries, and many experts say it has become the worst in decades.

The visit comes days after the United States welcomed a group of 59 South African “refugees”, President Donald Trump claimed to have been persecuted in South Africa due to their race and faced “genocide.” They flew to the United States through a special relocation program and will be allowed to settle there.

Ramaphosa's government denied the allegations and said white people who own more than 70% of the population were not discriminated against, despite making up 7% of the population.

The Ramaphosa office said in a statement that the two leaders will discuss “bilateral” and “issues of global interest.” The White House has not issued a statement on the meeting.

This is the first time Trump has received African leaders at the White House since taking office in January. South Africa, currently hosting the G20, will hand over leadership to the United States in November.

Here is the schedule for the expected meeting, and a breakdown of the main issues that are causing tension and most likely to raise:

When will the meeting be held?

Ramaphosa will travel on Monday, May 19 and will meet with Trump at the White House on Wednesday, May 21.

His office did not participate in the agenda for the talks, but he said: "The president's visit to the United States provides a platform to reset the strategic relationship between the two countries."

The agenda is expected to include treatment for white South Africans, aid cuts, and ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza.

What will Trump and Ramaphosa discuss?

The agenda is expected to include the following topics:

Treatment for white people in South Africa

The problem with the relationship between the advantageous white minority in South Africa’s history and the black-led government of Ramaphosa is the most sensitive government between the two governments.

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. More than half of the black population is classified as poverty.

Trump and his billionaire ally, South Africa-born Elon Musk, allegedly mistreated these whites by the Ramaphosa administration after they signed the law on the expropriation bill, allowing the government to seize land in some cases without compensation. The law was signed in January to allow any landowner to redistribute it to marginalized groups such as women and persons with disabilities.

Some Afrikaan groups say the law could allow their land to be redistributed to some black majority in the country.

Trump highlighted the allegations of a group of South Africans who feared their land would be caught. The group also said white farmers face disproportionately violent attacks, which resulted in several deaths and was equivalent to "genocide."

The South African government denies genocide and says the attacks are part of a broader crime problem. Speaking at the CEO Forum on Africa on the Ivory Coast on May 13, Ramaphosa said the U.S. government “continues the wrong ending” because South Africa has a high rate of violent crime regardless of the race of the victims. Both white and black farmers target farm attacks, in which armed criminals beat, robbed, and sometimes murdered farm workers in normal remote areas.

Meanwhile, Musk, the founder of Internet Company Starlink, also accused the government of failing to roll out in South Africa due to its black authorization laws, which requires that part of the large corporations and businesses seeking government contracts are owned by marginalized groups such as the black people.

Musk said in his March post on his X social media platform that Starlink is not allowed to launch "because I'm not black." Officials denied the allegations and said the country's business laws were designed to correct historical errors.

Tariffs and aid cuts South Africa

Since reentering the White House in January, Trump has implemented a series of economic policies that have hit South Africa.

First, the U.S. announced a full aid cut after Trump signed an executive order that at least 90 days after a foreign aid was signed to all countries.

This undermines South Africa's treatment and research funding for deadly infectious diseases such as HIV. South Africa has the largest number of people with HIV in the world, and before that, the United States provided about 18% of the government's HIV budget. In 2023, the United States provided $462 million in HIV assistance. Some HIV treatment plans have been cut since January, while others have recovered funding, although how much is not yet known.

In February, Trump ordered that what he said was "unjust racial discrimination" to allegedly confiscate white land and cut more economic aid specifically to South Africa. He also listed South Africa’s submissions in December 2023 against the Israeli genocide case against the Gaza war in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Finally, South Africa was also hit by Trump's tariff war. The country hit 30% tariffs on all goods in April. South African-made vehicles entering the U.S. have increased the tax rate by 25%, putting the vehicle surcharge at 55%.

Ramaphosa described Trump's actions as "punitive" and said tariffs would "be an obstacle to trade and common prosperity."

Although Trump stopped 90-day reciprocity tariffs in most countries, including South Africa, on April 9, the South African government hopes to sign the tariffs permanently. South Africa also faces Trump's 10% tariff on the benchmark for goods imposed by all countries.

The United States is South Africa's second largest bilateral trading partner after China. Under the Tax-Free Africa Growth Opportunities Act, introduced in 2000, South Africa sells precious stones, steel products and cars to the United States and buys crude oil, electrical products and aircraft in return.

The AGOA framework, including 32 African countries, will be renewed this year, but it is not clear whether Trump's White House will follow it.

Israel's International Court of Justice and Gaza War

The South African government filed a genocide case against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on December 29, 2023, accusing it of anger from Israel's allies and major arms suppliers during the attack on Gaza.

This landmark case highlights the voice and visible support of African countries for the Palestinian cause and is the first court case against Israel in the ongoing war in Gaza. The hearing began in January 2024. In March 2024, the ICJ issued an emergency order to ensure that food aid is delivered to Gaza and to stop its offensive in Rafa.

Both Joe Biden and Trump’s U.S. administration oppose South Africa’s moves, and Trump denounces Pretoria’s “aggressiveness.” On February 7, Donald Trump signed an executive order to sign aid to the country. The order cites the International Court of Justice, the Afrikaans issue and cooperation between South Africa and Iran in developing nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, despite this opposition, South Africa has promised not to withdraw its case. Foreign Secretary Ronald Lamola told the Financial Times in February that the country "has no chance" to retreat.

“Relying on our principles sometimes has consequences, but we firmly believe that this is important to the world and the rule of law,” he said.

Ukraine - Russian War

Trump and Ramaphosa are also expected to discuss peace and mediation in the Ukrainian-Russian war, as the two countries' representatives have met for the first time since the war began in February 2022.

The Trump administration has taken the lead in mediation between Russia and Ukraine. During his campaign, Trump promised that if elected, it would end in "within 24 hours." However, this effort is seen as a positive effort by some, but it falls into a flattening position. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's state visit to the United States ended with Trump and his deputy JD Vance, and shouted at their guests in February.

Meanwhile, South Africa chose to remain neutral in the conflict and called for dialogue between the two sides. The country was a historic ally of Russia due to the former Soviet Union's support during apartheid. Both are also founding members of the growing economic alliance of economies in India, Brazil and China, which some consider to be a competitor to the richest countries in the G5.

South Africa has no UN resolution to condemn Russia or Putin's invasion of Ukraine, nor has it rejected.

Meanwhile, Pretoria remains friendly with Ukraine. In April, Ramaphosa hosted Zelenskyy during a visit, during which they discussed growing trade and ongoing wars, with Ukrainian leaders calling for greater pressure on Moscow.

Hours before Zelenskyy met with Ramaphosa, South African leaders said he spoke with Trump over the phone and they both agreed that the war needed to stop.