President Trump is now talking about the Ukraine-Russia war, referring to the "bloodbath" of Ukraine.

"That's a bad situation," Trump says, recalling that he recently heard about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to South Africa.

"We would like to see the end of that war," Ramaphosa says, telling Trump he supports the work he is doing in trying to end the war.

Ramaphosa says South Africans have learned about "peace" from Nelson Mandela, and want to impart some of those lessons to other conflicts around the world.

Billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk, who often attends meetings at the White House, including with foreign leaders, has joined this meeting in the Oval Office.

Musk is himself from South Africa and has promoted discredited claims about a "genocide" against White South Africans.

Image source, Reuters

Trump says he wants to see peace across Africa. He says the US has settled conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which involved Rwandan-backed rebels.

"I think we have done it, believe it or not".

Ramaphosa thanks the US for their involvement.

Trump has opened the press conference up to questions from reporters.

The first is about the white South Africans who were allowed into the US to apply for refugee status while America's larger refugee program is indefinitely suspended.

"We've had tremendous complaints about Africa" and other places, Trump says in response, saying white farmers are "fleeing South Africa".

Trump says "don't say we didn't take them" to accusations that the US is unaccepting of other refugees. Trump says "just look to the southern border."

"That's really the purpose of the meeting," Trump says about what's happening to white South Africans, who say they are being persecuted.

Image source, Reuters

The conversation between the two leaders began by celebrating South Africa's golfers, and it has already returned to the topic of golf - one of Trump's great personal and business interests.

Ramaphosa says he has brought Trump a book about golf which weighs 14kg, and showcases the golf courses of South Africa.

He also thanks Trump for the US assistance during the pandemic, when the US sent respirators to South Africa, harkening back to Trump's first term as president.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Image source, Reuters

Trump played it carefully in his opening remarks in the Oval Office, only thinly hinting at the tensions between the two men and two countries.

He did not explicitly address one of the most contentious points of disagreement - the resettlement of Afrikaner South Africans given refugee status in the US.

Trump and his allies has said they are the victims of "genocide".

He did, however, say he wants to discuss "some of the things that are taking place in South Africa".

"We want to help," he added.

So far, this has been a cordial and diplomatic meeting, with both Trump and Ramaphosa choosing their words carefully.

Ramaphosa thanks Trump for welcoming him and his delegation to the White House and congratulates Tump. He says the visit was a "real joy".

Ramaphosa also offers thanks to Trump for allowing discussions at the trade level and says they are here to "reset the relationship" between the US and South Africa.

Trump and Ramaphosa are now sitting in the Oval Office, chatting about South Africa's golfers.

The US president says South Africa's president is "really respected".

Trump says they'll be discussing many things today, including the G20 - a meeting of international leaders which is to be hosted in South Africa for the first time, before the US takes over leadership of the group for next year.

The schedule at the White House appears to have been amended and we're going to be hearing from the two leaders' bilateral meeting before they have lunch.

You can watch Trump and Ramaphosa's meeting at the top of this page.

Image source, White House

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Image source, Reuters

It was a bit difficult to hear US President Donald Trump just now as he greeted Ramaphosa outside the White House, but from my vantage point - stuck behind the ladders of photographers - I could hear him say that his budget bill doing "very well" and is "very close" to going through.

He also fielded a question regarding Pope Leo's brother, who has been visiting the Hill and whom Trump referred to as a "fantastic guy".

Trump and Ramaphosa then quickly walked into the West Wing.

The White House press pool has been told to get ready to join them - so we're likely to hear from both men soon.

Stay with us for more updates.

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has arrived at the White House.

US President Trump greets him in front of a flurry of cameras.

Let's see what the meeting brings - stay with us.

One of the US service members holding a flag has just been escorted out of the White House premises, after falling to the ground.

It appears that he fainted, before a flurry of fellow service members ran to him and picked him up. He was able to walk away from the White House driveway.

From where BBC reporters are standing, we can see that he's currently receiving oxygen.

We're still waiting for the South African president to arrive - he's about 30 mins behind schedule.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

I'm currently outside the West Wing of the White House, waiting for Cyril Ramaphosa alongside a small group of reporters.

It's relatively muted and quiet here, compared to other visits by foreign leaders. The weather is almost certainly a factor - it just stopped raining and it's unseasonably cold.

US service members carrying flags are beginning to set up along the path that Ramaphosa's vehicle will travel to the West Wing. It's unclear how delayed his arrival is, at the moment.

Stay with us for more updates.

Farouk Chothia
BBC South Africa analyst

Some South African news sites have speculated on the possibility of a shouting match between Ramaphosa and Trump because of their strained relationship.

This happened when Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky met Trump and his second-in-command JD Vance in February.

The Daily Maverick reported, external that the meeting "could either reset South Africa's dreadful relations with the US - or could become a disastrous Zelensky-style ambush" for Ramaphosa.

But a senior minister in Ramaphosa's office, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, has downplayed the possibility.

"There is no-one who invites a guest to mistreat them, so we are expecting the highest level of decorum and necessary protocols to be accorded," she said last week, following Trump's announcement that he will be hosting Ramaphosa for their first meeting since his re-election as US president.

Image source, Reuters

The Washington Post reports that Trump plans to "loudly condemn politicians who promote genocidal rhetoric", citing an anonymous Trump official.

It is unclear if the topic of South African race relations will be raised in their private meeting or in front of the assembled press.

During the now-infamous Zelensky meeting, Trump, a former reality television star, ended the press interaction by saying the intense confrontation was "going to be great television".

Image source, EPA

Farouk Chothia
BBC South Africa analyst

Image source, Getty Images

Word in South Africa is that two of Trump's golf mates - South Africa's richest business tycoon Johann Rupert and celebrated golfer Ernie Els - arranged this meeting with Cyril Ramaphosa to ease months of tensions.

The Daily Maverick news site reported that Rupert "broke the padlock" to the White House for South Africa's president, without naming its sources.

Rupert later told News24 that Els - once ranked the world's top golfer - set up the meeting.

"Ernie Els was actually the person who, over the past month, talked Trump into agreeing to the meeting," the business tycoon said.

Rupert was previously quoted by News 24 as saying that he plays golf with Trump.

"I have known President Trump for 24 years, through golf. And I think he will use his import duties - this is my gut feeling - as a negotiating tool," Rupert said, when he addressed the annual general meeting of his Remgro company last November, external.

An Afrikaner, Rupert is listed by Forbes magazine as the second-richest person in Africa, with a net worth of $14bn (£10,5bn) - the type of person who will count presidents as his friends.

Els is also an Afrikaner, who instils pride among South Africans because of the multiple champions he has won in his long career as a golfer.

Khanyisile Ngcobo
Reporting from Johannesburg

Many South Africans are hopeful of a positive outcome ahead of President Cyril Ramaphosa's meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Ramaphosa's inclusion of several ministers and South African golfers in the delegation to the White House is an effort to reset relations with the US.

Things have been tense between the two countries since Trump attacked South Africa over claims that the country's white minority was being persecuted and its international genocide case against Israel.

Citizens told local media they were hopeful the visit would go well and expressed confidence in the president. Ramaphosa, who appeared confident and upbeat ahead of the meeting, also received support from his party, the African National Congress, which urged an engagement with "anyone who tampers with our sovereignty".

But politicians critical of Ramaphosa, like the Economic Freedom Fighters' Julius Malema, said the meeting was a "waste of time".

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Today's meeting with Cyril Ramaphosa is Trump's first encounter with a foreign leader since returning from the Middle East - on the familiar home turf of the Oval Office.

In previous meetings at the White House, Trump has sought to dominate similar encounters, which can often become awkward.

At times, the visitors - such as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer - have been put into the difficult situation of having to correct Trump on points of disagreement, a delicate balancing act when meeting a president who does not take dissent lightly.

This Ramaphosa visit is particularly tricky because of the deteriorating relationship between the US and South Africa.

Aside from the recent arrival to the US of Afrikaners who Trump says are victims of a genocide - a term which Ramaphosa is sure to challenge - there's also been a deterioration in diplomatic ties.

In March, South Africa's ambassador to the US, Ebrahim Rasool, was ordered to leave the country, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling him a "race-baiting politician who hates America".

Rasool later told the BBC it was "self-evident" that there was racism within the Trump administration.

For Ramaphosa, a best-case scenario would be that he navigates these issues with enough skill to ease tensions - at least temporarily.

A worst-case scenario, he'll know, is a public spat like the one we saw with Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky in February.

Damian Zane
BBC Africa Online

Image source, AFP / Getty Images

Two of the nine people named as being in Ramaphosa's delegation today were once among the best golfers in the world.

It's no accident that the South African leader has chosen Ernie Els and Retief Goosen to represent his country's interests - he is trying to appeal to Trump's well-known love of golf.

Ramaphosa could be hoping that the presence of Els and Goosen will go towards creating a cordial atmosphere during the bilateral meeting at the White House and help mend the cracks in the two countries' relationship.

Two decades ago, the South Africans were part of golf's "Big Five", which also included Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh - players who between them seemed to win every tournament.

There was an earlier sign that Ramaphosa - who is also known to play 18 holes - wanted to entice Trump through the sport.

The 72-year-old has invited the US leader for a friendly round during the G20 Summit due to take place in South Africa in November. Trump had previously raised doubts that he would be attending the meeting over his criticisms of Ramaphosa's government.

As you’ll have gathered, there are quite a few factors hanging over this visit to Washington from Ramaphosa.

There are also a few more elements at play to be aware of ahead of his meeting with Trump:

• Earlier this year, Trump began shutting down the US government's main overseas aid agency USAID, which had been a major contributor to South Africa’s HIV/Aids programme
• Ramaphosa has attempted to play peacemaker in the war in Ukraine, something Trump has also been focused on - Ramaphosa was recently visited by Zelensky and prior to that held a phone conversation with Putin
• South Africa filed an accusation of genocide against Israel with the International Court of Justice over its war in Gaza - a move criticised by the US
• The presidency of the G20 is currently held by South Africa, but is due to be handed to the US on 1 December this year

Image source, EPA

Ahead of Ramaphosa's arrival at the White House in roughly half an hour's time, let's take a closer look at the US president's accusation of genocide of white South Africans - an claim that has been rejected by South Africa and discredited more broadly.

Dozens of white South African farmers have been granted refugee status in recent weeks in the US, fast-tracked by Trump.

The South African government allowed the US embassy to consider their applications inside the country, and let the group board a chartered flight from the main international airport in Johannesburg - not scenes normally associated with refugees fleeing persecution.

Trump and Elon Musk claim the genocide centres around the murder of white farmers. Although some white farmers have been attacked and killed, South Africa has one of the world's highest murder rates, so this is an issue that affects all of its citizens, whatever their race.