G20 Summit Goes on Without Trump, US   11/20 06:05

   Leaders and delegates from the world's richest nations and top developing 
countries are gathering this weekend for the Group of 20 summit in South 
Africa, an event overshadowed by the boycott of U.S. President Donald Trump and 
his administration.

   JOHANNESBURG (AP) -- Leaders and delegates from the world's richest nations 
and top developing countries are gathering this weekend for the Group of 20 
summit in South Africa, an event overshadowed by the boycott of U.S. President 
Donald Trump and his administration.

   Africa's first G20 summit will see representatives of 42 countries, but not 
the United States, a founding member of the group and one that's supposed to be 
taking over its rotating presidency in Johannesburg.

   Trump has denounced South Africa's leadership of the G20 and said he would 
not attend, citing alleged discrimination of the country's white farmers. South 
Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has said he's told Trump that information 
about the alleged persecution of Afrikaners is "completely false."

   Last Friday, Trump also said that no U.S. officials would attend the 
gathering. The U.S. boycott has dominated discussions -- more so than the 
summit's agenda, which includes climate resilience, debt sustainability for 
poor nations and growing inequality.

   U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier this year skipped the G20 
meeting of foreign ministers, followed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent who 
missed the finance ministers meeting. The U.S. has also urged member nations 
not to adopt a "Leaders Declaration" at the end of the summit, which would 
signal a multilateral consensus.

   Still, Johannesburg has been a hive of activity ahead of the summit -- 
workers have undertaken a massive clean-up of the streets and bright flowers 
have been planted along some city roads, adorned with colorful G20 banners and 
billboards.

   An empty chair

   While the hosts have admitted that the U.S. absence raises concerns about 
the summit's ultimate success, South Africa's foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, 
said Tuesday it was also an opportunity "to send a clear message that the world 
can move on" without the U.S. -- but that it won't be easy.

   "It will not be a walk in the park, but when there is global consensus, we 
can be able to find persuasive means to enable the world to function," Lamola 
said.

   He downplayed both Trump's absence and those of other heads of state who are 
not making it to Johannesburg, saying that a "100% attendance of heads of 
states" has never happened.

   Lamola also cited China's Xi Jinping who has not been travelling much this 
year, instead sending Premier Li Qiang to represent him -- including in South 
Africa.

   Russian President Vladimir Putin will also be absent from the summit as 
there is an arrest warrant against him by the International Criminal Court over 
Russia's war on Ukraine.

   The warrant obliges South Africa, a signatory to the Rome Statute that 
established the court, to arrest Putin if he steps on its territory. Putin also 
missed the summit of the BRICS group of emerging economies in South Africa in 
2023 for the same reason.

   Advancing an inclusive agenda

   South Africa has used its presidency of the G20 to push for action to 
address the challenges of poor nations -- such as securing financing to help 
countries facing the devastating effects of climate change, something 
independent experts estimate would require about $1 trillion a year by 2030.

   On Tuesday, an expert panel's report called for the International Monetary 
Fund and G20 countries to adopt broad measures to refinance debt of poor 
nations.

   The African Union, a G20 member, plans to speak for African countries facing 
climate change challenges and financial pressures, according to Mahmoud Ali 
Youssouf, the chairperson of the African Union Commission.

   Brian Kagoro, managing director at the think-tank Open Society Foundations, 
said that while the U.S. boycott is "regrettable," what matters most is the 
substance of what Africa advances at the summit.

   "If anything, the situation underscores the need to accelerate global 
governance reform, ensuring that all regions, including Africa, have a 
meaningful voice in setting global priorities," Kagoro said.

   Support for the summit

   Other powerful countries -- including France, Germany and the United Kingdom 
-- have backed the G20 summit and their leaders are expected to arrive in South 
Africa on Friday, ahead of the two-day event, with many bilateral talks 
expected on the sidelines of the summit.

   U.N. Secretary-General Antnio Guterres has also confirmed his attendance.

   "I will be there and I am totally committed to work within the G20, to move 
all the key reforms that are essential in the international financial system 
and to create the conditions for the development agenda, particularly in 
Africa, to be sustainable," Guterres said while in Angola last week.