JOHANNESBURG, April 14 (Xinhua) -- South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed Roelf Meyer as the country's ambassador to the United States, local media reported Tuesday.

Citing Vincent Magwenya, spokesperson for President Ramaphosa, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported that Meyer is to take up the post in Washington after the position remained vacant since March 14, 2025, following the expulsion of former ambassador Ebrahim Rasool.

Rasool was declared "persona non grata" by the United States after he publicly criticized the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, leaving the diplomatic post unfilled for more than a year.

Following Rasool's departure, Ramaphosa appointed former deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas as special envoy to the United States in April 2025. However, according to media reports, the U.S. government denied Jonas a diplomatic visa, citing past critical remarks in which he branded Trump a "racist, homophobe and narcissistic right-winger" in 2020.

Meyer, 78, is widely regarded as an experienced negotiator who played a key role in South Africa's transition to democracy in the early 1990s. Following the release of Nelson Mandela and the unbanning of liberation movements in 1990, he participated in the landmark Groote Schuur talks between the apartheid-era government and the African National Congress, an early step toward ending apartheid. ■