South Africa’s President Ribs Trump Over Qatari Plane In Tense Exchange

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa ribbed President Donald Trump during a tense Oval Office meeting on Wednesday, saying he didn’t have a plane to gift him after the U.S. accepted a luxury jet from Qatar.

The Context
Democrats and Republicans alike have raised concerns about whether Qatar could be gifting the $400 million jet to the U.S. to influence Trump’s foreign policy decisions, allegations the White House and the Qatari government have both categorically denied.

The Pentagon confirmed Wednesday that it had formally accepted the plane, described as a “palace in the sky,” and tasked the U.S. Air Force with upgrading the jet so Trump can use it as a new Air Force One.

What To Know
NBC’s Peter Alexander asked Trump about the Pentagon accepting the plane during Trump’s Oval Office meeting with Ramaphosa on Wednesday.

The question came after Trump spent several minutes showing Ramaphosa photos, videos and newspaper articles that he claimed were proof of a “white genocide” happening in South Africa.

“Mr. President, the Pentagon announced that it would be accepting a Qatari jet to be used as Air Force One…” Alexander said, before Trump cut him off. The president called Alexander an “idiot” and accused NBC of trying to distract from his allegations against South Africa by asking about the Qatari jet.

Trump Ramaphosa
President Donald Trump meets South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office of the White House on May 21, 2025. Evan Vucci/AP
Trump also suggested NBC executives should be “investigated” and later elaborated on why Qatar was gifting the plane to the Pentagon.

“Why did a country give an airplane to the United States Air Force?…So they could help us out, because we need an Air Force One,” Trump said. He then gestured to Alexander, saying, “That’s what that idiot talks about after viewing a thing where thousands of people are dead.”

Ramaphosa cut in, saying, “I’m sorry I don’t have a plane to give you.”

“I wish you did,” Trump responded, drawing laughter from Ramaphosa. “I would take it. If your country offered the United States Air Force a plane, I would take it.”

“Okay,” the South African president replied.

He then turned back to Trump’s claims of white farmers being persecuted in South Africa, saying he would like to discuss the issue with Trump “calmly.”

“We were taught by Nelson Mandela that whenever there are problems, people need to sit down around a table and talk about them,” Ramaphosa said.

“Well, there are problems,” Trump said.

The Trump administration has repeatedly accused the South African government of taking land from white farmers without any compensation and that white people in the country are being killed en masse. South Africa has categorically denied the allegations and the country’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation told its American counterparts earlier this month that the claims were unfounded.

In February, a South African court ruled that claims of a white genocide were “clearly imagined” and “not real.” Police figures showed around 44 murders on farms and agricultural land in 2024, with eight farmers among them.

The Trump administration nevertheless granted refugee status to Afrikaners—despite cracking down on asylum-seekers from virtually all other countries—and welcomed the first group of Afrikaners to the U.S. earlier this month.

What People Are Saying
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement Wednesday: “The secretary of defense has accepted a Boeing 747 from Qatar in accordance with all federal rules and regulations. The Department of Defense will work to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements are considered for an aircraft used to transport the president of the United States.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said this month Congress will dig into how the Qatari jet will be used as Air Force One: “If and when it’s no longer a hypothetical, I can assure you there will be plenty of scrutiny of whatever that arrangement might look like.”

What Happens Next
When a reporter asked Trump what it would take to be convinced that there is no genocide against white South Africans, Ramaphosa jumped in and said: “It will take President Trump listening to the voices of South Africa—some of them are his friends.”