Officials in the southern African nation of Lesotho expressed shock and dismay Wednesday after President Donald Trump observed that “nobody has ever heard of” the country during his joint address to Congress the night before, saying they are preparing a diplomatic protest.
Lesotho government officials said they were confused after hearing Mr. Trump’s throwaway remark about their nation, citing “warm and cordial” conversations with U.S. officials in the past.
Citing what he said was a long litany of wasteful U.S. government and foreign aid programs he had targeted, Mr. Trump blasted what he categorized as wasteful and ridiculous spending that went to Lesotho.
“Eight million dollars to promote LGBTQI+ in the African nation of Lesotho,” Mr. Trump said, getting laughs from some members of Congress, adding in an apparent ad lib, “which nobody has ever heard of.”
Lesotho’s foreign minister said Mr. Trump’s comments were strange considering the African nation is a trade partner with the U.S. and houses a U.S. embassy.
“To my surprise, ‘the country that nobody has heard of’ is the country where the U.S. has a permanent mission,” Lesotho Foreign Affairs Minister Lejone Mpotjoane told the BBC. “Lesotho is a member of the UN and a number of other international bodies. And the U.S. has an embassy here and there are a number of U.S. organizations we’ve accommodated here in Maseru.”
The minister added that Lesotho would send a formal letter of complaint to Washington.
“We are not taking this lightly,” the minister told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
Lesotho is a major beneficiary of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which provides African nations with favorable trade access, and the country exported millions of dollars’ worth of textiles to the U.S. in 2024.
Lesotho and other African countries have already felt the impact of Mr. Trump’s decision to slash U.S. foreign aid. Most of Lesotho’s foreign assistance was distributed through USAID, which has seen its funding cut or frozen. The country said the funding cuts have significantly hurt HIV and tuberculosis prevention programs the most.
If he wants more information on the nation of 2.2 million, Mr. Trump could ask his billionaire efficiency adviser Elon Musk. The South African-born Mr. Musk has been seeking a license in the country for his SpaceX internet satellite service and was photographed meeting with Lesotho Prime Minister Sam Matekane in September while attending the U.N. General Assembly gathering in New York.
