Johannesburg [South Africa], November 27 (ANI): South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called the United States’ decision not to invite South Africa to the 2026 G20 Summit in Miami “regrettable.”
He said that despite numerous efforts by him and his administration to reset diplomatic relations with the US, President Trump continues to apply punitive measures against South Africa based on “misinformation and distortions” about the country.
Calling the Summit hosted by South Africa this year one of the most successful, Ramaphosa said, “The summit produced a declaration that affirmed the indisputable strength and value of multilateralism in response to the most pressing challenges facing the world.”
Addressing Trump’s remarks, President Ramaphosa said, “South Africa will continue to participate as a full, active and constructive member of the G20. We call on members of the G20 to reaffirm its continued operation in the spirit of multilateralism, based on consensus, with all members participating on an equal footing in all of its structures.”
He added that South Africa is a sovereign constitutional democracy and “does not appreciate insults from another country” about its membership or its worthiness in global platforms. “South Africa respects the sovereignty of all countries and will never insult or demean another country or its standing and worthiness in the community of nations,” he said.
Ramaphosa noted that because the United States did not attend the summit, instruments of the G20 Presidency were handed over to a US Embassy official at South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
“As one of the founding members of the G20, South Africa has always valued the spirit of consensus, collaboration and partnership that defines the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation,” he said. He also highlighted that although the US was expected to participate in all meetings during South Africa’s Presidency, it “elected not to attend the G20 Leaders Summit in Johannesburg out of its own volition.”
He appreciated the strong participation of US businesses and civil society organisations in G20-related activities such as the B20 and the G20 Social.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump announced that South Africa would not be invited to the 2026 G20 Summit in Miami, sharply criticising the South African government over what he described as “horrific Human Rights abuses.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed the South African government “refuses to acknowledge or address the horrific human rights abuses endured by Afrikaners and other descendants of Dutch, French, and German settlers.”
“To put it more bluntly, they are killing white people and randomly allowing their farms to be taken from them,” he wrote.
Trump also criticised major US media outlets for allegedly ignoring the issue. “Perhaps worst of all, the soon-to-be-out-of-business New York Times and the Fake News Media won’t issue a word against this genocide,” he said.
He added that South Africa refused to hand off the G20 Presidency to a senior representative from the US Embassy who attended the Closing Ceremony. “Therefore, at my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026 G20, which will be hosted in the Great City of Miami, Florida, next year,” he said.
Announcing further measures, Trump said the US would halt financial contributions to South Africa. “South Africa has demonstrated to the world that they are not a country worthy of membership anywhere, and we are going to stop all payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately,” he stated.(ANI)
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