Donald Trump’s first tweet on Africa as president of the United States wasn’t true.

This is a fact: The South African Government is not seizing or expropriating land and farms.

This is what the president tweeted on Aug. 22:

“I have asked Secretary of State @SecPompeo to closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures and expropriations and the large scale killing of farmers. “South African Government is now seizing the land from white farmers.” @TuckerCarlson @FoxNews”

By directing foreign policy via tweets based on what he saw on Tucker Carlson’s show on Fox News, the president undermines the U.S. State Department’s own intelligence, damages the United States’ reputation globally, and destabilizes policy discussions taking place in South Africa.

The day after Trump’s tweet, the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation released a statement saying: “President Trump’s tweet serves only to polarize debate on this sensitive and crucial matter.”

Land reform is a major issue in South Africa. Under Nelson Mandela’s presidency a new constitution enshrined the right to property in the Bill of Rights. Expropriation can only take place under eminent domain for public use, as is the case in the United States. Farm land has been purchased by the state under a “willing-seller, willing buyer” policy, but the program has not been successful because of difficulties in assessing fair market rates.

In 2016, the South African parliament passed a bill allowing the state to determine fair prices for the expropriation of agricultural land, but the bill has not been implemented. Discussions are currently underway for a constitutional amendment to allow the state to appropriate land for redistribution without compensation, but land owners could legally challenge appropriations in court.

Meanwhile, the State Department’s own Country Reports on Human Rights Practices confirms the rule of law in South Africa: “South Africa is a multiparty parliamentary democracy in which constitutional power is shared among the executive, judiciary, and parliament branches.”

But on his show Carlson rejects these facts and refused to believe a statement that he claimed came from the State Department:

“We are aware of these reports and have been following this issue very closely for some time. South Africa is a strong democracy with resilient institutions, including a free press and an independent judiciary. South Africans are grappling with the difficult issue of land reform through an open process including public hearings, broad-based consultations, and active civil society engagement. President Ramaphosa has pledged that the land reform process will follow the rule of law and its implementation will not adversely affect economic growth, agricultural production, or food security.”

The day after Trump’s tweet the Washington Post quoted this statement in full and contacted the State Department to confirm its authenticity. They refused to comment. During Thursday’s State Department press briefing, Heather Nauert refused to refute or correct the president’s untruth. Instead she backtracked by saying “land reform” was a point of discussion between the President and Secretary of State. The State Department’s refusal to correct the president’s lie damages American diplomacy.

Fact. There is no “large scale killing” of farmers.

The State Department’s 2017 Human Rights Report does not support these claims. Statistics on violence against farmers in South Africa do not differentiate on the basis of race or status. There is no means to statistically determine whether acts of violence on farms are committed by or against farm owners or workers or perpetrated by outsiders. The 2015 South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) report stated: “Violent crime within farming communities is not isolated to specific geographical regions within South Africa, nor any specific socioeconomic group, nor any specific race.” Yes, white farmers are among those who have been killed and assaulted. Violence against farmers and farm dwellers of all races, ages, and genders is a priority concern of the South African police.

Trump’s tweet ignores the historical reality of the massive racial imbalance of agricultural land ownership in South Africa stemming from colonization and apartheid. The South African Human Rights Commission Equality Report 2017/2018 stated that “Of the farm and agricultural land holdings owned by private individuals, Black South Africans directly own a mere 4 percent of rural land, while the White population group owns 72 percent of such land.” Population statistics from 2015 estimate that black South Africans comprise 80.48% and whites 8.25% of the almost 55 million population. Since the end of apartheid the South African government has concentrated on laws that protect the rights of farm workers and their families to decent wages and living conditions, access to health care, and education for their children. These huge social issues are a historical legacy of racial discrimination.

Misinformation spread by President Trump has been debunked by the reputable media, disproven by State Department intelligence, and disavowed by the South African government. Will Secretary of State Pompeo call the president on his lie?

Ward is the editor of the Journal of World History and an associate professor of history at Rice University.