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WORLD NEWS Thursday 6 February 2025
South African president phones influential billionaire Musk after

Trump’s funding threat

By GERALD IMRAY $440 million in assistance
Associated Press last year.
CAPE TOWN, South Af- The South African govern-
rica (AP) — South African ment said no land has been
President Cyril Ramaphosa confiscated, and even
spoke with Donald Trump’s groups in South Africa that
“influential” billionaire ad- have been critical of the
viser Elon Musk a day af- new law said Trump was
ter the new U.S. president wrong in claiming any land
promised to cut funding for had been taken away.
South Africa over a land “We will respond expedi-
expropriation law, Rama- tiously to disinformation
phosa’s spokesperson said and mischaracterization of
Wednesday. our laws as well as the gen-
Ramaphosa’s conversa- eral state of the country,”
tion with Musk was “logi- Magwenya, Ramaphosa’s
cal,” spokesperson Vincent spokesperson, told report-
Magwenya said, because ers Wednesday. “We were
the South African-born obviously perturbed by
Tesla and SpaceX entre- the substance of the an-
preneur has held previous nouncement (by Trump)
investment-related discus- because there were clearly
sions with Ramaphosa and inaccuracies.”
is a Trump ally. Elon Musk arrives before the 60th Presidential Inauguration in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Magwenya said South Af-
The land law, which was Washington, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025. Associated Press rica hoped to have more
signed by Ramaphosa last engagements with the
month, is contentious be- than that.” Trump again trading partner in Africa, as billion dollars a year in as- Trump administration at
cause it gives the govern- didn’t provide details. being anti-white and has sistance, the vast majority various levels, including
ment scope to expropriate The South African gov- cast the law in question as of it for the world’s biggest with “influential figures like
land from private parties. ernment said Trump’s an- a deliberate act to take HIV/AIDS program. Elon Musk.”
Trump announced Sunday nouncement and related land away from its white South Africa has the high- The new law targets land
that he would stop financial criticism of the country by minority. est number of people liv- that is unused or not being
assistance while the U.S. in- Musk was full of “misinfor- He faces scrutiny in the U.S. ing with HIV in the world at utilized in the public inter-
vestigated why South Afri- mation and distortions” for his control over parts of more than 8 million, with est, and property rights are
ca was “confiscating land” and the call to Musk was to the federal government, around 5.5 million on anti- protected, according to
from some people, without set the record straight. but the South Africa issue retroviral medication. the government. No land
saying who. He told report- Musk, who is leading the also shows his influence on The U.S. funds around 17% has been taken under the
ers wrongly that the South Trump administration’s new U.S. foreign policy. of South Africa’s HIV pro- law, which was only signed
African government was Department of Govern- Should Trump follow gram through the Presi- by Ramaphosa two weeks
taking away land and “ac- ment Efficiency, has long through on his promise to dent’s Emergency Plan for ago and is a result of years
tually they’re doing things criticized the government cut South Africa’s funding, AIDS Relief, known as PEP- of consultations and Parlia-
that are perhaps far worse in his homeland, a key U.S. it would stop nearly half a FAR, and gave the country mentary debates.q
Colombia’s president orders national oil company to cancel US

venture over environmental concerns

By MANUEL RUEDA gas from shale rock that be sold, and for the mon- that was livestreamed on tol’s total production last
Associated Press has been criticized by en- ey to be invested in clean social media. “We are year. Ecopetrol, controlled
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) vironmental groups. energies,” Petro said in a against fracking, because by the Colombian govern-
— Colombian President “I want that operation to meeting with his Cabinet fracking is the death of ment but also listed on the
Gustavo Petro on Tues- nature, and the death of New York Stock Exchange,
day ordered the state-run humanity.” saw its shares rise 2% on
oil company Ecopetrol to Ecopetrol had announced Tuesday following the an-
cancel a joint venture with on Monday it would re- nouncement of its deal
a U.S.-owned company new its operations with with Occidental. How-
that was expected to pro- Oxy in the Permian basin, ever, they fell slightly after
duce around 90,000 bar- an oil producing region Petro called for the agree-
rels of oil per day, citing that spans Texas and New ment’s cancellation.
environmental concerns. Mexico, to develop 91 oil Colombia has refused to
In a nationally televised wells, investing over $880 approve fracking proj-
speech, Petro said he op- million. ects on its territory, though
posed the recent exten- Ecopetrol said its projects it had not previously
sion of a deal between in the Permian basin pro- blocked Ecopetrol from
Ecopetrol and Occiden- duced an average of taking part in fracking ven-
tal Petroleum, or Oxy, be- 95,200 barrels of oil per tures overseas.
cause it involved extract- Colombia President’s Gustavo Petro addresses the 79th session day in the first nine months Environmentalists argue
ing oil through fracking, a of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations of last year. Operations in that fracking can pollute
controversial technique headquarters, Sept. 24, 2024. the Permian basin made water sources and cause
used to extract oil and Associated Press up around 12% of Ecope- tremors.q