US President Donald Trump used social media to announce that the US was ducking out of the G20 summit in South Africa this month because “Afrikaners … are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated”.
Reuters reports that Vice President JD Vance, who was expected to attend the Group of 20 world leaders in Johannesburg on November 22 and 23 “was no longer going, a source familiar with the matter said”.
South Africa’s foreign ministry said it had taken note of Trump’s “regrettable” social media post, adding: “The claim that this community (Afrikaners) faces persecution is not substantiated by fact.”
Trump wrote on his Truth Social account: “It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa. Afrikaners (people who are descended from Dutch, and also French, and German settlers) are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated. No US government official will attend as long as these human rights abuses continue. I look forward to hosting the 2026 G20 in Miami, Florida!”
In response, the South African Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation said: “The South African Government wishes to state, for the record, that the characterisation of Afrikaners as an exclusively white group is ahistorical. Furthermore, the claim that this community faces persecution, is not substantiated by fact.
“Our position on this matter remains consistent with our previous statements, here, here, here, and here.
“Against this backdrop, South Africa’s focus remains on its positive global contributions. Drawing on our own journey from racial and ethnic division to democracy, our nation is uniquely positioned to champion within the G20 a future of genuine solidarity, where shared prosperity bridges deep inequalities. We look forward to hosting a successful G20 Leaders’ Summit.”
The BBC notes that “(n)one of South Africa’s political parties – including those that represent Afrikaners and the white community in general – have claimed that there is a genocide in South Africa”.
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