Julius Malema, the outspoken leader of South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), has never been one to mince words. But on December 11, 2025, in a heated press briefing in Johannesburg, Malema’s criticism of U.S. President Donald Trump reached a new crescendo. Standing before reporters and streaming live to followers across the globe, Malema didn’t just call out Trump’s recent actions—he likened the American president to Adolf Hitler, describing him as the “new Hitler” and the “Adolf Hitler of the modern day,” according to Briefly News and INSIDE POLITICS.
At the heart of this escalating war of words is Trump’s controversial decision to bar South Africa from the 2026 G20 Summit, set to take place in Miami, Florida. South Africa, a founding member of the G20, found itself uninvited, with Trump’s administration denying accreditation to its delegation for all G20 events in the United States. For Malema, this was not just a diplomatic snub—it was, in his words, “further proof” of what he called the rise of “United States imperialism and fascism under the Donald Trump administration.”
“It has resulted in the EFF correctly characterising Donald Trump as a reincarnation of Adolf Hitler,” Malema declared. He accused the U.S. of perpetrating war crimes both at home and abroad, citing American actions in Venezuela, alleged manipulation of electoral processes in Latin America, and Trump’s threats to “colonise the Gaza Strip.” The EFF leader’s message was clear: Trump’s unilateral decisions, especially regarding the G20, mirrored the authoritarianism and disregard for international norms that defined history’s most infamous dictators.
Malema didn’t stop there. He issued a fiery call for solidarity among G20 member nations, urging them to boycott the Miami summit if South Africa remained excluded. “The only way to defeat fascism is through solidarity,” he insisted, echoing the rallying cries of past anti-fascist movements. “The world has defeated fascism through solidarity, and there is no diplomacy with fascism. We must unite now or perish,” he told the assembled press, as reported by SABC News.
Malema’s condemnation of Trump wasn’t an isolated incident. Over the years, he and the EFF have repeatedly clashed with the former U.S. president. The EFF previously labeled Trump a “KKK leader” after the U.S. expelled South Africa’s ambassador, Ebrahim Rasool. Malema has also responded to Trump’s tweets about alleged genocide and land confiscation in South Africa, and the party has even called Trump a liar following his meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House. According to Briefly News, Malema once claimed that Trump was “scared of him” because of his performance of the controversial anti-apartheid chant, “Kill the Boer.”
The latest diplomatic rift, however, appears to have deeper roots. Malema and other South African leaders believe Trump’s hardline stance is a direct response to South Africa’s international policies, particularly its decision to take Israel to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over alleged genocide in Gaza. “It doesn’t matter what you say or do; the man [Trump] has taken a decision to go against South Africa—not because of what the EFF says but because of the government’s position against Israel,” Malema asserted, as reported by TimesLIVE.
Malema further claimed that footage played at the Oval Office was being used to “peddle lies” about South Africa, specifically referencing a video of himself singing “Kill the Boer” that Trump reportedly used to support claims of a “white genocide” against Afrikaner farmers. South Africa’s government and numerous international bodies have dismissed these claims as unfounded, but they’ve nonetheless fueled tensions between the two countries. “Look, the footage that’s being played at the Oval Office is used to peddle lies about SA, that cannot be used to force us to retreat from our stance,” Malema said.
Trump’s decision to boycott the G20 summit in South Africa earlier in 2025, and his subsequent push for other nations to do the same, only added fuel to the fire. In November 2025, Malema took another public swipe at Trump after the American president announced that no U.S. delegate would attend the G20 in South Africa due to “the terrible things that were happening in the country,” as reported by Briefly News. Malema’s response was swift and sharp, accusing Trump of undermining South Africa’s role as a founding member of the G20 and attempting to isolate the country on the world stage.
But it wasn’t just Trump who faced Malema’s ire. The EFF leader also condemned President Ramaphosa’s delegation to Washington, calling them “clowns” for what he saw as their failure to defend South Africa’s position on global issues, particularly the ICJ case against Israel. Malema singled out presidency minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni as “the biggest clown of them all,” recounting an incident where she allegedly claimed to have secured Trump’s attendance at the G20 after speaking to her “friend,” Elon Musk. “Our president went there with his clowns and explained himself, and it didn’t work,” Malema quipped, as quoted by TimesLIVE.
Despite his harsh words for Ramaphosa’s team, Malema did offer a rare compliment to the president himself, saying Ramaphosa handled the situation “very successfully, in a situation where he was confronted with serious hostility. It was not easy to fight America. If it were me, it would have been worse.”
As for the future, Malema made it clear that the EFF and its supporters would not back down. He vowed to mobilize international communities to condemn Trump’s actions and to fight for South Africa’s participation in the 2026 G20. “We are a founding member of the G20. We will mobilise international communities to condemn Trump’s actions,” he stated.
The diplomatic standoff also comes at a pivotal moment in South African politics. During his December press briefing, Malema predicted that ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula was on track to become the next ANC president, unless “serious intervention” was made. Using a marathon analogy, Malema said, “If it was a marathon, Mbalula is ahead. Paul [Mashatile] is trying to catch up… I don’t know how he will get there.” He also dismissed rumors linking his family to businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, clarifying, “I am not related to Cat Matlala. ‘Cat’ Matlala and my wife share a surname… and my wife is not related to Cat Matlala.”
With the G20 Summit looming and diplomatic relations between South Africa and the United States at a low point, Malema’s words have struck a chord both at home and abroad. Whether his call for a G20 boycott will gain traction remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the EFF leader is determined to keep South Africa’s voice—and his own—at the center of the global conversation.
The coming months will test the resilience of international alliances and the resolve of leaders on both sides of the Atlantic. As Malema’s rhetoric echoes through the halls of power, the world watches to see whether solidarity or division will define the next chapter of the G20—and global politics itself.
