Donald Trump confronted South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House on Wednesday with discredited claims that a “white genocide” is taking place in the country.
In a tense exchange, Mr Trump made the baseless claim that white farmers were being “persecuted” and “fleeing” South Africa.
South Africa rejects the allegation that white people are disproportionately targeted by crime. Murder rates are high in the country and the overwhelming majority of victims are Black.
"People are fleeing South Africa for their own safety," said Trump, who at one point dimmed the lights in the Oval Office to play a video of a communist politician playing a controversial anti-apartheid song that includes lyrics about killing a farmer. "Their land is being confiscated and in many cases they're being killed."
Ramaphosa sat expressionless as a montage of videos was played. He later said: “I'd like to know where that is because this [the videos] I've never seen".
Experts in South Africa say there is no evidence of whites being targeted.
Ramaphosa pushed back against Trump's accusation.
"We are completely opposed to that," Ramaphosa said of the behavior alleged by Trump in their exchange.
The US president then showed printed copies of articles, which he claimed showed white South Africans who had been killed.
He said of one article: "Here's burial sites all over the place, these are all white farmers that are being buried."
Ramaphosa responded: “What you saw, the speeches that were being made, that is not government policy. We have a multi-party democracy in South Africa that allows people to express themselves, political parties to adhere to various policies.
"And in many cases or in some cases, those policies do not go along with government policy.
"Our government policy is completely, completely against what he [a person in the video montage] was saying. Even in the parliament. And they are a small minority party which is allowed to exist in terms of our constitution."
Trump has cut all US assistance to South Africa and welcomed several dozen white South African farmers to the US as refugees.
