US Secretary of State Marco Rubio states, “My job is to advance America’s national interests, not waste taxpayer money or coddle anti-Americanism”.
Due to concerns over South Africa’s policies, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced that he will not be attending a G20 summit in Johannesburg this month.
Rubio made his remarks on Wednesday, just a few days after US President Donald Trump threatened to stop funding South Africa with foreign aid due to claims of land theft and abuse of “certain classes of people”.
“South Africa is acting in a very negative manner, taking private property away, advancing “solidarity, equality, & sustainability” through the G20 that is , DEI and climate change”, he stated, alluding to the diversity, equality, and inclusion programs in South Africa.
He continued by saying, “My job is to advance America’s national interests, not waste taxpayer money or coddle anti-Americanism”, in an attempt to justify his absence from the event.
From February 20-21, the G20 foreign ministers will gather in Johannesburg.
Misinformation
Cyril Ramaphosa, the president of South Africa, denied Trump’s claims earlier this week that his country was “confiscating” land and stated that he was prepared to brief his US counterpart on his government’s land reform program.
Ramaphosa expressed concerns about “disinformation” being disseminated by the US president in a conversation with Elon Musk, a close Trump ally, on Tuesday.
Three decades after apartheid ended, the majority of farmland in South Africa is still controlled by white people, making land ownership a divisive topic. There is pressure on the government to enact reforms.
The G20, which is supposed to represent the biggest economies in the world, would suffer a serious setback if the United States, the largest economy in the world, were to withdraw.
As Trump presses for diplomacy on the situation in Ukraine, the meeting might have provided Rubio with his first chance to see Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
