IN CONVERSATION WITH GAKWI Independent Political Analyst
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United States President Donald Trump has once again set off diplomatic
shockwaves after announcing on social media that South Africa will not be
invited to next year’s Group of 20 (G20) summit in Miami, Florida. The
declaration, posted on Wednesday, marks a significant escalation in already
strained relations between Washington and Pretoria.
In his message, Trump revived long-discredited claims of an alleged “white
genocide” in South Africa, asserting that the country “is not worthy of
membership anywhere” and vowing to halt all US funding and subsidies to the
nation. The Biden administration had previously reversed similar policies during
Trump’s first term, but since returning to office, Trump has reinstated and
expanded them.
“South Africa has demonstrated to the World they are not a country worthy of
Membership anywhere,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “We are going to stop all
payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately.”
Trump has repeatedly accused the South African government of failing to
protect white Afrikaners, alleging rampant killings and land seizures—claims
that human rights experts globally have dismissed as false and unsupported by
evidence. Despite this, the US president has leaned heavily on the rhetoric to
justify punitive actions against South Africa and to criticise the media, which he
claims ignores his warnings.
“The South African Government refuses to acknowledge or address the horrific
Human Right [sic] Abuses endured by Afrikaners,” Trump wrote. “To put it more
bluntly, they are killing white people, and randomly allowing their farms to be
11:30
11:35
taken from them.”
A G20 Summit Marked by US Absence
Tensions reached a new peak during last weekend’s G20 summit, hosted for the
first time on African soil in Johannesburg. The event, a milestone for the
continent, was overshadowed by the Trump administration’s decision to
boycott the gathering entirely.
No senior US officials were sent to the summit, a move Trump had previewed
earlier in the month, calling it a “total disgrace” that the event was being held in
South Africa.
According to diplomatic sources, the rift deepened when President Cyril
Ramaphosa declined an offer from the US to send an embassy representative to
receive the ceremonial gavel, which symbolically passes the G20 presidency
from one host nation to the next. Ramaphosa opted not to hand the gavel to
any delegation at all, breaking tradition.
Trump seized on this as justification for barring South Africa from the 2026
summit.
“At my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026
G20,” Trump confirmed.
Ramaphosa Calls for Unity Amid Rising Tensions
Throughout the summit, Ramaphosa sidestepped questions about the US
absence, instead using his platform to emphasise global cooperation, shared
humanity and the need for greater international solidarity.
“Our G20 Presidency has been rooted in the conviction that the world needs
more solidarity, equality and sustainability,” he wrote on social media. “While
some have sought to create division and polarisation between nations, we have
reinforced our shared humanity.”
He later dismissed the US boycott, saying, “Their absence is their loss.”
A Relationship in Decline
The breakdown in US–South Africa relations accelerated early in Trump’s
second term. In February, he issued an executive order accusing South Africa of
human rights violations against white Afrikaners and cutting all aid to the
country. Prior to the cuts, US assistance to South Africa totalled more than
$441m in 2023 and approximately $581m in 2024.
The same order directed US agencies to fast-track the resettlement of
Afrikaners as refugees in the US. Trump later reinforced this in October when
he set the lowest refugee admission cap in US history—only 7,500—reserving
most spaces for Afrikaners and other groups he claimed faced “illegal or unjust
discrimination”.
Diplomatic tensions also flared during Ramaphosa’s visit to the White House in
May,
shockwaves after announcing on social media that South Africa will not be
invited to next year’s Group of 20 (G20) summit in Miami, Florida. The
declaration, posted on Wednesday, marks a significant escalation in already
strained relations between Washington and Pretoria.
In his message, Trump revived long-discredited claims of an alleged “white
genocide” in South Africa, asserting that the country “is not worthy of
membership anywhere” and vowing to halt all US funding and subsidies to the
nation. The Biden administration had previously reversed similar policies during
Trump’s first term, but since returning to office, Trump has reinstated and
expanded them.
“South Africa has demonstrated to the World they are not a country worthy of
Membership anywhere,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “We are going to stop all
payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately.”
Trump has repeatedly accused the South African government of failing to
protect white Afrikaners, alleging rampant killings and land seizures—claims
that human rights experts globally have dismissed as false and unsupported by
evidence. Despite this, the US president has leaned heavily on the rhetoric to
justify punitive actions against South Africa and to criticise the media, which he
claims ignores his warnings.
“The South African Government refuses to acknowledge or address the horrific
Human Right [sic] Abuses endured by Afrikaners,” Trump wrote. “To put it more
bluntly, they are killing white people, and randomly allowing their farms to be
11:30
11:35
taken from them.”
A G20 Summit Marked by US Absence
Tensions reached a new peak during last weekend’s G20 summit, hosted for the
first time on African soil in Johannesburg. The event, a milestone for the
continent, was overshadowed by the Trump administration’s decision to
boycott the gathering entirely.
No senior US officials were sent to the summit, a move Trump had previewed
earlier in the month, calling it a “total disgrace” that the event was being held in
South Africa.
According to diplomatic sources, the rift deepened when President Cyril
Ramaphosa declined an offer from the US to send an embassy representative to
receive the ceremonial gavel, which symbolically passes the G20 presidency
from one host nation to the next. Ramaphosa opted not to hand the gavel to
any delegation at all, breaking tradition.
Trump seized on this as justification for barring South Africa from the 2026
summit.
“At my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026
G20,” Trump confirmed.
Ramaphosa Calls for Unity Amid Rising Tensions
Throughout the summit, Ramaphosa sidestepped questions about the US
absence, instead using his platform to emphasise global cooperation, shared
humanity and the need for greater international solidarity.
“Our G20 Presidency has been rooted in the conviction that the world needs
more solidarity, equality and sustainability,” he wrote on social media. “While
some have sought to create division and polarisation between nations, we have
reinforced our shared humanity.”
He later dismissed the US boycott, saying, “Their absence is their loss.”
A Relationship in Decline
The breakdown in US–South Africa relations accelerated early in Trump’s
second term. In February, he issued an executive order accusing South Africa of
human rights violations against white Afrikaners and cutting all aid to the
country. Prior to the cuts, US assistance to South Africa totalled more than
$441m in 2023 and approximately $581m in 2024.
The same order directed US agencies to fast-track the resettlement of
Afrikaners as refugees in the US. Trump later reinforced this in October when
he set the lowest refugee admission cap in US history—only 7,500—reserving
most spaces for Afrikaners and other groups he claimed faced “illegal or unjust
discrimination”.
Diplomatic tensions also flared during Ramaphosa’s visit to the White House in
May,
