The South African government has announced that it will not participate in G20 activities during 2026, following confirmation from the United States that South Africa will not be invited to events held under the U.S. presidency.
The decision was communicated by presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya on Wednesday evening, shortly after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly reiterated that South Africa would be excluded from the 2026 summit and related meetings. Magwenya stated that South Africa would “take a commercial break” from the forum in 2026 and resume full engagement once the rotating presidency passes to the United Kingdom in 2027.
In a statement and social-media posts on 3 December, Secretary Rubio criticised South Africa’s domestic policies on land reform, broad-based black economic empowerment, and regulatory measures, asserting that they had damaged investor confidence and economic growth. He further accused the South African government of tolerating violence against farmers, promoting what he termed “radical agendas” on climate change and diversity, and aligning with regimes hostile to U.S. interests. Rubio also claimed that South Africa had obstructed negotiations and disregarded American input during its own 2025 G20 presidency.
President Cyril Ramaphosa described the U.S. decision as “unfortunate but not unexpected,” stressing that South Africa remained a founding and permanent member of the G20 and would not seek reinstatement through bilateral appeals. He emphasised that participation would resume automatically under the next presidency.
Analysts note that South Africa’s absence from the 2026 cycle – the first time a full member has been excluded since the G20’s establishment in 1999 – could diminish its influence on issues of importance to the Global South, including reform of the international financial architecture, climate-finance commitments, and debt relief for developing economies. The episode further highlights deepening strains in U.S.–South Africa relations since the inauguration of the second Trump administration in January 2025.
