'I'm not going to represent our country there' — Trump to skip G20 summit, dashing hopes of brokering meeting between Zelensky, Putin
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters on Nov. 5 that he will not attend the upcoming Group of 20 (G20) summit in Johannesburg planned for Nov. 22-23, amid his criticism of South Africa's human rights policies.
Trump's comments come days after Finnish President Alexander Stubb suggested a possible meeting between the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, and the U.S. at the summit.
"I'm not going to represent our country there. It shouldn't be there," Trump told reporters, referring to the location of the summit.
"How could we be expected to go to South Africa for the very important G20 meeting when land confiscation and genocide are the primary topics of conversation?" the U.S. president added.
Trump has repeatedly accused South Africa of human rights abuses against white South African Afrikaners, issuing an Executive Order in February denouncing the alleged seizure of "ethnic minority Afrikaners' agricultural property without compensation."
For its part, South Africa has rejected Trump's accusations of human rights violations, calling Trump's premise "factually incorrect."
As part of broader efforts to achieve a peace deal in Ukraine, Trump has sought to organize an in-person meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Trump previously said that U.S. Vice President JD Vance would represent the U.S. at the G20. The Kremlin also said that Putin is not expected to attend, with Maksim Oreshkin, Putin's deputy chief of staff, attending in his absence.
The Kremlin has long avoided such a bilateral or trilateral meeting, repeatedly saying that certain "conditions" must be met beforehand and only suggesting talks with Zelensky in Moscow.
Trump's months-long push to end the war in Ukraine, marked by frequent and radical shifts in Washington's policy, has shown little progress as Moscow continues to reject a ceasefire and pushes territorial demands.
A planned summit between Putin and Trump in Budapest has been scrapped, reportedly after the U.S. administration realized the Kremlin refuses to compromise on its maximalist demands.
Trump has previously avoided meeting with Zelensky at international summits. During the June G7 summit in Canada, Trump left the summit one day before Zelensky's arrival amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Since Trump returned to office in January, he has met Putin only once, during a high-level summit in Alaska on Aug. 15.
Martin Fornusek
