President Donald Trump announced on Friday that the United States would skip the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) summit in South Africa, adding that no US government representatives would attend it.
Emphasising that the decision was due to concerns about how the country treats its white farmers, Trump, on his social media platform, described the decision to host the G20 in South Africa as "a total disgrace", and highlighted the alleged mistreatment of Afrikaners, including violence, deaths, and the seizure of their land and farms.
Trump had previously confirmed he would not participate in the annual gathering of leaders from major global economies. Vice President J.D. Vance was expected to attend as his replacement. However, an anonymous source close to Vance's schedule revealed to AP that he would also no longer be travelling to the summit.
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The Trump administration has been criticising the South African government for the alleged persecution and attacks against minority white Afrikaner farmers. When the US limited annual refugee admissions to 7,500, the administration suggested that many of these spots would be for white South Africans, asserting they faced discrimination and violence in their home country.
In response, the South African government expressed surprise at these discrimination claims. It argued that white citizens generally enjoy a much higher standard of living than Black residents, even over three decades after the end of apartheid, the system of white minority rule.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said that he informed Trump directly that reports about discrimination and persecution against Afrikaners are entirely false.
Despite these denials, the US administration has continued to voice its criticism of the South African government. Earlier this week, during an economic address in Miami, Trump suggested that South Africa should be removed from the G20 entirely.
Earlier this year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio also skipped a G20 meeting for foreign ministers, saying the meeting's agenda prioritised topics like diversity, inclusion, and climate change initiatives.
