US lawmakers urge punishment for South Africa over alleged Russia support

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers has called on the Biden administration to punish South Africa for allegedly supporting Russia's invasion of Ukraine by relocating an important trade meeting to another country. The lawmakers said South Africa's "aid" for Russia, including allegedly supplying Moscow with weapons, called into question its eligibility to receive trade benefits from the US under a law that improved US market access to qualifying sub-Saharan African countries. South Africa is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which allows sub-Saharan African countries duty-free access to the US market provided they meet certain conditions.