President Trump said he will skip November’s G20 summit in South Africa, sending Vice President JD Vance in his place.
U.S. ties with South Africa have soured, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio already boycotting a February meeting over its “anti-American” stance. South Africa’s government has since backed Iran after the 12 Day War and pursued a genocide case against Israel while supporting Hamas. Trump has also accused South Africa of committing “genocide” against white farmers and offered Afrikaners U.S. asylum.
President Cyril Ramaphosa and Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola dismissed Trump’s G20 absence as a reluctance to travel and welcomed VP Vance instead. The U.S. will assume the G20 presidency after the Johannesburg summit in November.
The G20 was conceived as a means of promoting stability by coordinating the leading developed and developing nations. However, its original mission has become less clear over the years.
DEVELOPING | International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola welcomes the decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to assign Vice-President JD Vance to represent Washington at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg in November. pic.twitter.com/Fi657VBtEc
— SABC News (@SABCNews) September 6, 2025
