In a significant diplomatic move, President Donald Trump announced on Friday that no U.S. government officials would attend this year’s Group of 20 (G20) summit in South Africa. The decision stems from allegations of mistreatment of white Afrikaner farmers in the country. Trump, who had previously declared his absence from the annual gathering of global leaders, also revealed that Vice President JD Vance, initially scheduled to represent the U.S., would no longer attend.
Trump expressed his disapproval on social media, labeling the summit’s location as a ‘total disgrace’ and citing alleged abuses against Afrikaners, including violence, land confiscation, and systemic persecution. The Trump administration has consistently accused the South African government of failing to protect its white minority population, particularly farmers, from discrimination and violence.
In a related policy decision, the administration has capped the annual number of refugees admitted to the U.S. at 7,500, with a focus on white South Africans facing alleged persecution. However, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has dismissed these claims as ‘completely false,’ emphasizing that white citizens generally enjoy a higher standard of living compared to their Black counterparts, decades after the end of apartheid.
The administration’s stance has sparked controversy, with Trump even suggesting during a recent economic speech in Miami that South Africa should be expelled from the G20. This boycott follows a similar move earlier this year when Secretary of State Marco Rubio skipped a G20 foreign ministers’ meeting, criticizing its agenda on diversity, inclusion, and climate change.
The decision underscores the Trump administration’s prioritization of its domestic and international political narratives, even at the cost of diplomatic engagement on the global stage.