Trump says he will skip the G20 summit, claiming South Africa no longer deserves its place in the group.

US President Donald Trump has announced that he will not attend the upcoming G20 summit in Johannesburg, claiming that South Africa “no longer deserves” to be part of the group of leading global economies.

Speaking at the American Business Forum in Miami on Wednesday, Trump said, “South Africa shouldn’t even be in the G’s anymore, because what’s happened there is bad.” The summit, scheduled for November 22–23, will instead see US Vice President J.D. Vance represent Washington.

Trump’s remarks mark another escalation in his ongoing criticism of the South African government. He has repeatedly condemned the country’s land reform policies, accusing Pretoria of targeting white farmers and carrying out what he described as “massive human rights violations.”

Earlier this year, Trump signed an executive order cutting US aid to South Africa and initiating a resettlement programme for white Afrikaners in the United States, whom he referred to as victims of “unjust racial discrimination.”

The South African government has strongly rejected the US president’s assertions, describing them as “factually incorrect” and rooted in a misrepresentation of the country’s land redistribution efforts. Pretoria maintains that its policies aim to address the historical inequalities created by apartheid, not to victimise any racial group.

South Africa’s inclusion in the G20 — a forum representing the world’s largest economies — has long been viewed as a symbol of its regional influence and its role as Africa’s leading economic power. Trump’s decision to skip the summit, and his remarks questioning the country’s place in the bloc, could add diplomatic strain to already tense relations between Washington and Pretoria. (ARISE NEWS)