South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is hosting the G20 summit, stated there is strong agreement on a summit declaration despite the U. S. boycotting the event. G20 envoys created a draft declaration without U. S. involvement, which some U. S. officials criticized as “shameful. ” The draft included mentions of climate change, which the Trump administration opposes, doubting the link between human activities and global warming.
In his opening remarks, Ramaphosa expressed gratitude to all delegations for their cooperation in creating the G20 outcome document. He emphasized the importance of the first African G20 presidency and urged that its value should not be diminished. The U. S. boycott stemmed from unfounded allegations that South Africa’s government mistreats its white minority and from Trump’s rejection of the summit’s agenda, which focuses on solidarity and support for developing countries.
Despite the U. S. absence, analysts noted that other countries might embrace the summit’s agenda, helping achieve a meaningful declaration. Three of South Africa’s main agenda items relate to climate change: addressing climate-induced disasters, financing green energy transitions, and ensuring mineral production benefits producers. The final item seeks a fairer borrowing system for poor nations. Ramaphosa will hand over the presidency to an “empty chair” due to the boycott, rejecting the U. S. offer to send a representative for the handover.
With information from Reuters