South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday responded to US President Donald Trump's accusations of land "seizure" and "abuse of certain groups," he said.

Ramaphosa said his country had not expropriated any land, adding that the expropriation law was constitutionally enshrined.

He stressed in his remarks that the United States remains a major strategic political and trade partner of South Africa.

Pretoria maintains that the law does not allow the government to arbitrarily seize property, and that it must first seek an agreement with the owner.

Ramaphosa added that his government looks forward to engaging with the Trump administration on land reform policy and issues of mutual interest.

For its part, the South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, "We are confident that Trump's advisors will use the investigation period to reach a comprehensive understanding of South Africa's policies within the framework of constitutional democracy."

"It may turn out that the confiscation law is not exceptional, as a large number of countries have similar legislation," the Foreign Ministry added.

Trump accused South Africa on Sunday of "expropriating" land and "treating certain groups of people very badly," announcing the suspension of any future funding to the country, pending an investigation.

South Africa's currency fell in early trading on Monday after Trump's comments about cutting funding.

Last January, the South African president issued a law that allows the government, under certain circumstances, to confiscate land for the public interest without providing any compensation at all.

The land issue in South Africa is divisive, with efforts to address inequality inherited from apartheid drawing criticism from conservatives, particularly Elon Musk, the South African-born billionaire who is one of President Trump’s closest advisers.

It is noteworthy that the white minority in South Africa - which constitutes 9% of the country's population since the colonial period - owns 75% of the arable land.