Ramaphosa: US absence from G20 "their loss"
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Wednesday that the United States' decision to skip the G20 summit in Johannesburg on November 22–23 will not prevent the world's major economies from meeting and making important decisions.
Pretoria and Washington have been at odds over a range of policy issues, including the summit agenda, prompting US President Donald Trump to announce that no US officials would attend the gathering. "We will take fundamental decisions and their absence is their loss," Ramaphosa told reporters in Cape Town. He added: "In many ways, the United States is also giving up the very important role that they should be playing as the biggest economy in the world."
Argentina's President Javier Milei — a vocal ally of Trump — has also said he will not attend and will instead send Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno.
South Africa's priorities as G20 chair
As current G20 chair, South Africa aims to use the presidency to elevate Global South priorities, including strengthening climate resilience and addressing debt burdens in developing countries, before handing the chair to the United States next year. The South African theme, "Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability," has been criticised by the US, which described it as "anti-American." Ramaphosa insisted that decisions on issues such as the cost of debt would still move forward despite the boycott.
— Tensions —
Tensions between Pretoria and Washington have intensified since Trump returned to office in January. Trump has repeated debunked claims that white Afrikaners are being systematically "killed and slaughtered" in South Africa — allegations the South African government rejects. Earlier this year, Trump reportedly showed Ramaphosa a video in the Oval Office making similar claims. In May, the US offered refugee status to some Afrikaners, and a first group was flown to the United States on a chartered plane.
The Trump administration has also criticised South Africa for pursuing a case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and for domestic laws intended to empower Black South Africans as part of efforts to redress inequalities from apartheid.
About the G20: Founded in 1999, the Group of 20 comprises 19 countries plus two regional bodies — the European Union and the African Union. Together the members represent roughly 85% of global GDP and about two-thirds of the world’s population. This will be the first G20 summit held on African soil.
Reporting by AFP.
