U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he would not attend the upcoming South Africa G20 summit, citing concerns about the country’s policies, including agrarian reform and its “anti-U.S. stance.”
South Africa will hold the G20 summit in Johannesburg from February 20 to 21. The G20 Summit is the main forum for international economic cooperation.
“South Africa is doing something really bad,” Rubio said in a post through his X account.
He wrote: “I will not attend the G20 summit in Johannesburg.
“South Africa is doing something very bad – advocate for private property and using the G20 to promote ‘unity, equality and sustainability’. In other words: DEI and climate change.
“My job is to promote the national interest of the United States, not to waste taxpayers’ money or anti-Americanism.”
Rubio’s decision comes days after U.S. President Donald Trump slammed South Africa’s land policy. Trump has said he will cut all U.S. funds to South Africa, calling his land reform efforts a “human rights violation.”
Meanwhile, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has rejected Trump’s remarks, stressing that his country has no “confiscated land.”
