SA lawsuit against Israel ‘unlikely’ to impact trade with US
An international relations expert says it's unlikely that South Africa's decision to challenge Israel at the International Court of Justice will affect our trade relations with the US.
South Africa and Israel are at the UN's top court in the Hague on Thursday and Friday.
SA is seeking an order forcing Israel to suspend its military operations in Gaza, accusing the country of genocidal acts in the enclave.
The US, which has shown open support for Israel's war on Hamas, has labelled SA's accusations “without merit”.
ALSO READ: Israeli President labels SA’s ICJ case ‘atrocious and absurd’
"Those participating in global politics are quite pragmatic, so as we struggle to maintain a good relationship with the United States, remember that their ambassador embarrassed our government last year,” says Professor Anthoni Van Nieuwkerk from the Wits School of Governance.
"At the same time, we maintain a trade relationship with Americans, even if we disagree with them politically."
"The same with the Europeans, the Germans or the British. Very powerful trade partners. We might disagree with them politically even more after this particular court case, but I think the trade relationship will continue, so we won't lose so much."
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