By S’thembile Cele.
South Africa and the US exchanged barbs over the Group of 20 summit this weekend in Johannesburg, as the White House called President Cyril Ramaphosa’s claim that Washington had rethought its boycott of the event as “fake news”.
The G20 hasn’t even started, but it’s already descended into the kind of petty taunting that went on during Brazil’s presidency of the Brics summit of major developing nations earlier this year, when President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva upped his attacks on President Donald Trump, who responded in kind.
It follows the attack on the multilateral order that’s characterised the US leader’s second term. Trump has boycotted the G20 – a first for the US – and reiterated false claims that South Africa is instigating a genocide against White Afrikaners.
But on Thursday, Ramaphosa said his government had received notice from the US about a “change of mind” in Washington’s participation – a notion the US immediately disputed.
Earlier this week, the US formally warned South Africa against pushing for a joint statement at the first G20 held on African soil, according to a document seen by Bloomberg. Trump had previously said no official would attend.
Marc Dillard, who became deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Pretoria in August, has been put forward as the official to attend a ceremony marking the handover of the G20 presidency.
But the South Africans are expected to deny this request, saying the Americans need to propose someone of suitable seniority.
The decision to send an embassy official rather than a cabinet member reflects the tension between Trump’s administration and South Africa.
The US formally becomes president of the group of leading economies at the start of next month, which makes its decision to snub the summit especially significant.
Beyond missing the summit, meant for the world’s most powerful leaders to address critical geopolitical and economic problems, the US is pressuring South Africa and other members not to publish a joint declaration at its conclusion.
“The US opposes issuance of any G20 summit outcome document under the premise of a consensus G20 position, without US agreement,” it said in a letter to South Africa, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
“If a deliverable is issued under your presidency, it will be framed solely as a chair’s statement to accurately reflect the absence of consensus.”
Securing a declaration is a priority for Ramaphosa.
He has sought to build on the agenda advanced by recent G20 presidents from the so-called Global South – Indonesia, India and Brazil – that includes making the fight against climate change and inequality a priority. The US is opposed to prioritising those issues.