Listen to the article
A leading defence specialist says South Africa is not a threat to US National Security, after Donald Trump claimed that South Africa has taken an aggressive position towards the United States and its allies by accusing Israel of genocide in the International Court of Justice.
Trump added that South Africa is also “reinvigorating its relations with Iran to develop commercial, military, and nuclear arrangements.”
Helmoed Heitman said although the country may do “a lot of dumb things, it isn’t quite stupid enough to exchange nuclear technology with Iran.”
Heitman explained that when it comes to nuclear technology or the field of guided weapons systems, most of the people involved in the projects have long since retired or died. This is due to the lack of investment in this area for 20 years.
In an interview with National Security News, he said, “Bluntly put, Iranian defence technology is now probably ahead of what we’ve still got,” he added.
Many South African engineers who were involved in guided weapons are now working in the UAE or elsewhere, Heitman added.
Heitman remarked that there is no real national security risk at this stage; it is probably just an irritation for the United States due to South Africa’s court action against Israel. What is a serious irritation for Israel irritates Washington, he said. “They don’t like anybody working with Iranians and they have suspicions that we might be giving stuff to Iran.”
Heitman argued that US Intelligence proved to be faulty when they claimed that weapons were loaded onto the Lady R, a Russian ship in Simon’s Town, South Africa. He accused the former ambassador of “shooting from the hip.”
He however added that while there might not be a deliberate risk to the United States from South Africa, there could be an indirect one due to South Africa’s actions against Israel and because they are “being nice to the Russians about Ukraine.”
Trump’s reference to South Africa’s potential aid to Iran in the military space seems more like a pre-emptive or deterrent move to “rattle South Africa’s cage bars as a warning not to get any ideas of being too friendly with Iran,”he said
“I think it boils down to American frustration, criticised not just by South Africa, but all of Africa, despite providing considerable aid funding—I’d probably react similarly,” Heitman concluded.
In an op-ed for National Security News, André Pienaar wrote that President Trump had called South Africa out for crossing red lines on Iran’s military and nuclear programme. Pienaar noted that South Africa has failed to grasp the serious and direct language of Trump’s Executive Order and described the strategic implications of his order as earth shattering.
He said, “it indicates that the US has intelligence that the ANC is clandestinely building a deep military partnership with Iran at both a tactical and a strategic level, including nuclear cooperation which threatens Israel, the US, and allies.”
Pienaar added that it has implications for international security but also for the security of South Africans at home.
