G20 envoys agree draft declaration, sources say
G20 envoys have agreed to a draft leaders’ statement without U.S. input ahead of this weekend’s summit in Johannesburg, four sources familiar with the matter said.
US President Donald Trump’s administration announced that it will boycott the summit to be held on November 22-23 due to disagreements with the host South Africa.
Trump had said that he would not attend the G20 summit due to discrimination against the white Afrikaner minority in the country, but the South African government denies this claim.
World leaders gathered on Friday for the first Group of 20 summit on the African continent, aiming to move the problems of poor countries to the top of the global agenda.
The leaders’ statement is the usual climax to G20 summits and, although not a binding document, details any broad agreements reached by members.
The bloc has often struggled to put words into action due to the different priorities of members such as the United States, China, Russia, India and Western European countries.
“It is a long-standing G20 tradition to publish only consensus-based outputs, and it is a shame that the South African government is now seeking to depart from this standard practice, despite our repeated objections,” a senior Trump administration official said.
None of the sources disclosed details of the declaration’s content, and it was unclear what concessions would have to be made on the language to ensure everyone agreed, especially on climate change, where any mention of the United States objected to being included in the debate.
The G20 has expanded to 21 members, including 19 countries alongside the European Union and the African Union, and aims to bring rich and poor countries together to tackle issues particularly around the global economy.
Three of South Africa’s top four planned agenda items—preparing for climate-induced weather disasters, financing the transition to green energy, and providing critical mineral benefits to producers—were largely related to climate change.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday that South Africa was in talks with the United States, which will host the G20 in 2026, about its possible participation in the summit, but the White House later denied this.
Ramaphosa has previously said he is against surrendering to the “empty chair”.
The White House announced on Thursday that it would send a chargé d’affaires to the United States for the transfer of the G20, but the South African presidency rejected this offer.
Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called on G20 members to work to end the conflict.
Ahead of the start of the G20 on Saturday, Guterres called on members to “use their influence and voice to end the conflicts that have caused so much death, destruction and instability around the world.”
Guterres specifically touched upon wars and conflicts in Ukraine, the Gaza Strip, Sudan, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“From Haiti to Yemen to Myanmar and beyond, we must choose peace based on international law,” he said.
He also called on countries to take action on climate change and help reduce global inequalities (both financial inequality and representation in international institutions).
with AP
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
