Trump announces no US officials to attend G20 summit in South Africa

(AFP) President Donald Trump said Friday that no U.S. officials will attend the upcoming G20 summit in South Africa, a country he accuses of murdering white people.

In September, Trump had announced that Vice President JD Vance would attend the G20 summit instead. The U.S. leader plans to hold the 2026 summit at his golf club in Miami.

"It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa," the president said on his Truth Social network. "No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue. I look forward to hosting the 2026 G20 in Miami, Florida!"

Trump has made recurring claims of an alleged "white genocide" in the African country, asserting that Afrikaners, descendants of early European settlers in South Africa, "are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated."

This year, he shocked South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office, by playing a video in which he alleged that the post-apartheid government was waging a campaign against white farmers.

The South African government denies that any such policy exists.

The Trump administration last week announced plans to slash the number of refugees the U.S. will accept annually, bringing it to a record low of 7,500. He gave priority to white South Africans.

The two countries have also had disagreements over issues such as South Africa's complaint against Israel for genocide in Gaza before the International Court of Justice, the top U.N. court.

Meanwhile, Trump has imposed 30% tariffs on South Africa, the highest in sub-Saharan Africa.