Roelf Meyer has been appointed as South Africa’s new ambassador to Washington.

The appointment comes after a lengthy vacancy in the position, following the expulsion of the previous ambassador, Ebrahim Rasool, in 2025. Rasool was expelled amid escalating tensions between South Africa and the United States (US), after accusing American President Donald Trump of attempting to project "white victimhood" as a political strategy.

The appointment of Meyer, 78, comes at a crucial time as diplomatic relations between the two countries remain delicate. The spokesperson for the South African presidency, Vincent Magwenya, confirmed the decision, describing the appointment as "immediate". Meyer, who was integral in the negotiations that ended apartheid in South Africa, is seen as a figure who bridges South Africa's divided past with its present international aspirations.

Roelf Meyer served as the chief negotiator for the National Party (NP) during the early 1990s, alongside now-President Cyril Ramaphosa, who was the chief negotiator for the African National Congress (ANC), in the landmark talks that led to the dismantling of apartheid. Meyer, who was first elected to Parliament on an NP ticket in 1979, was a key architect of the political transition and served as defence minister under FW de Klerk in 1991 and 1992 before becoming constitutional affairs minister from 1992 to 1994. In 1994, after the ANC won the first democratic election and Nelson Mandela became president, Meyer continued to serve in the cabinet until 1996.

Meyer and Ramaphosa had a close relationship during the negotiations, with the two reportedly bonding over a trout fishing trip in 1991, when Ramaphosa had to help Meyer remove a fishing hook that had got stuck in Meyer’s finger.

Meyer resigned from the NP’s successor (the New National Party) in 1997 before forming the United Democratic Movement with Bantu Holomisa in 1998. He joined the ANC in 2006.

Meyer’s appointment is seen as a bid to restore relations between South Africa and the US, which have been fraught in recent years. The South African government has faced significant pressure to navigate diplomatic complexities with Washington, particularly regarding the fallout from Rasool’s expulsion and the broader context of South Africa’s alignment with US adversaries, such as China, Russia, and Iran. The US relationship is vital to South Africa, with the US remaining a key trading and investment partner for Pretoria.

Sources who spoke to The Common Sense said the appointment has been broadly welcomed in Washington.

Frans Cronje told The Common Sense, "The appointment has a real prospect of resetting the relationship with America and securing first a trade deal and then a broader investment pact. The appointment may also be effective in offsetting any sanctions risk."

The timing of the announcement was interesting, coming in the same week that the new Democratic Alliance (DA) leader, Geordin Hill-Lewis, "shat –the bed" in diplomatic terms in describing the Trump administration as “reprehensible and a liability to the world”. Sources have told The Common Sense that comment has turned opinion against the party in Washington, where it was already seen as "underwhelming", at precisely the moment the ANC made a considered move to repair the US relationship.

Response to Meyer’s appointment was mixed, with it being welcomed by the DA, but criticised by the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) who said Meyer’s joining the ANC 20 years ago called into question his credibility.

Kallie Kriel, the CEO of AfriForum, said it was a form of “ANC cadre deployment” to appoint Meyer. “His shifting between parties and his eventual alignment with the ANC do not reflect steadfastness,” Kriel said.

A key ANC ally, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), said: “Roelf Meyer’s record of managing complex negotiations between hostile partners is well known, from helping to transition South Africa from the apartheid regime to our constitutional democracy, including helping to draft our internationally respected Constitution with the now-President Ramaphosa.”

COSATU also criticised attacks on Meyer by AfriForum and the FF+, saying it was: “dismayed by the juvenile temper tantrums by AfriForum, the FF+,and other far-right-wing cranks who have shamelessly dabbled in race-baiting and white nationalist politics for far too long. [COSATU] is not bothered by whatever family fight the FF+’ predecessor, the Conservative Party, had with Mr Meyer 40 years ago when they rejected the then-apartheid’s government’s decision to negotiate with the then-banned liberation movement, the ANC. It is 2026 and time for such apartheid relics to move on and accept that South Africa is a non-racial constitutional democracy.”