Washington boycotts G20 summit in South Africa cites ‘oppression of white farmers’.

By: ThinkBusiness Africa

United States President Donald Trump said late Friday that the United States would enforce a complete diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, citing what he called “human rights abuses” and state-sanctioned persecution against the nation’s minority white farmers.

The announcement overrides plans for Vice President J.D. Vance to attend the international forum, which is scheduled for November 22-23. The move is expected to cause significant disruption to the summit’s agenda, which South Africa has focused on themes of “Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability.”

In an attacking  post published on his Truth Social platform, President Trump declared the hosting of the summit in South Africa a “total disgrace” and vowed that “No U.S. Government Officials will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue.” He said.

The President specifically referenced allegations of violence, killings, and the “illegal confiscation” of farmland targeting Afrikaners—descendants of Dutch, French, and German settlers. Mr. Trump has repeatedly made these claims throughout the year, escalating the diplomatic friction between Washington and Pretoria.

The South African government, which has repeatedly rejected the administration’s claims of systematic persecution, expressed surprise and disappointment at the decision.

The central issue of land has been magnified by South Africa’s recently enacted Expropriation Act, a law aimed at redistributing land taken during the colonial and apartheid eras, which allows for the seizure of property without compensation in certain defined cases for “public interest.”

The boycott marks the culmination of months of diplomatic tension over the Afrikaner issue. The Trump administration has taken several steps this year to put pressure on Pretoria

Washington sharply reduced the annual refugee admissions limit to 7,500, simultaneously indicating that most of those admitted would be white South Africans facing alleged discrimination.

In February, the US froze a portion of foreign aid to South Africa, directly criticizing the new land reform law as discriminatory.

Earlier this year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio boycotted a G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in South Africa, protesting the inclusion of diversity and climate change on the meeting’s agenda.

The US will take-over leadership of the ‘Group of Twenty’ from South Africa next year.

Trump says he can’t wait to host them in Miami in 2026.

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