US Boycotts G20 Summit in South Africa

Ramaphosa stated before the parliament, according to Business Insider Africa, that there is no loss in Washington’s absence as it abandons the important role it should play as the world’s largest economy. He emphasized that the boycott would not prevent the summit from taking place. Last Saturday, US President Donald Trump launched a scathing attack on the decision to hold the G20 summit in South Africa, calling it a ‘total disgrace’ and accusing the South African government of ‘killing and slaughtering white farmers and illegally confiscating their land and farms,’ according to his claims. Trump announced a full US boycott of the summit, stating, ‘No US government official will attend as long as these human rights violations continue.’ An American news agency reported that at the end of last month, President Trump’s administration announced a sharp reduction in the number of refugees allowed into the United States, reducing it to only 7,500 refugees starting from the fiscal year 2026, with a clear focus on accepting most of them from white South Africans. According to the agency’s report, this number represents ‘the largest historical decrease in the refugee resettlement program, compared to previous years when hundreds of thousands of migrants from around the world were accepted.’ The previous US administration under President Joe had raised the cap to 125,000 refugees annually, reflecting a more open policy. The US authorities did not disclose the precise reasons behind this dramatic reduction, merely publishing the announcement in the Federal Register, with a general justification indicating the acceptance of these refugees ‘for humanitarian reasons or national interest.’