US President Donald Trump's adviser has gotten into a spat with Pretoria on X

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has claimed that his Starlink satellite internet service cannot operate in South Africa because he is "not black." South African officials fired back, insisting that the issue has nothing to do with Musk's race. 

Musk, who was born in Pretoria but mainly resides in the US, made his comments on Friday in reaction to a podcast featuring South African businessman Rob Hersov. In a snippet shared online, Hersov claimed that "race-based laws in South Africa are all anti-white" and argued that the country has been "infected... with an evil woke mind virus."

"Starlink is not allowed to operate in South Africa, because I'm not black," Musk wrote on X. 

Clayson Monyela, South African diplomatic spokesman, quickly rejected Musk's claims. "Sir, that's NOT true and you know it! It's got nothing to do with your skin color," Monyela wrote on X. He added that Starlink was welcome to operate in South Africa "provided there's compliance with local laws."

South African laws designed to address racial inequalities left from the Apartheid era mandate that foreign telecommunications firms be at least 30% owned by "persons from historically disadvantaged groups." Starlink, a subsidiary of Musk's SpaceX, does not sell its shares publicly.

Last year, Starlink's parent company wrote a letter to South African telecommunications regulator ICASA, describing the 30% shareholding requirement as a "significant barrier" to investment.

Last month, US President Donald Trump threatened to cut off aid to South Africa. He accused the country of cozying up with Iran and condemned its lawsuit to the International Court of Justice, which alleged that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. Trump also argued that South Africa's land reform violates human rights.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has denied that his government was tolerating human rights abuses. "We will not be bullied," he said in a speech in February. Ramaphosa met with Musk last month, discussing the "issues of misinformation and distortions about South Africa," according to the president's office. 

The South African government says that the controversial Expropriation Act is aimed at remedying the disparities in the country, where white farmers still own the majority of land, despite whites comprising around 7% of the population. The government has set a target of transferring 30% of farmland to black farmers by 2030.