Trump to Skip G20 Summit, Calls for South Africa’s Removal over Gaza Stance

By Staff, Agencies

US President Donald Trump announced that he will not attend the upcoming G20 summit in Johannesburg, arguing that South Africa should be expelled from the group of major economies due to its support for Palestine and its lawsuit against "Israel" at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Speaking at the American Business Forum in Miami on Thursday, Trump said, “South Africa shouldn't even be in the G's anymore, because what's happened there is bad. I'm not going ... I'm not going to represent our country there. It shouldn't be there.”

The remarks came after South Africa accused "Israel" of genocide in Gaza before the ICJ. Trump had similarly voiced his intention in April to skip the summit, citing South Africa’s “anti-Israel” position.

Earlier this year, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also said he would boycott the G20 meeting, while South Africa vowed not to bow to Washington’s pressure.

The G20, which includes 19 countries, the African Union, and the European Union, is set to meet on November 22–23 in Johannesburg.

Tensions between Washington and Pretoria have deepened since Trump accused the South African government of enabling a so-called “white genocide,” claims dismissed as baseless by President Cyril Ramaphosa, who said violence in South Africa affects all citizens equally.

Ramaphosa said the upcoming G20 Summit will focus on reforming the global financial system and reducing inequality.