Overview
- Vice President J.D. Vance, previously slated to attend in Trump’s place, will no longer travel, confirming a full U.S. absence from the Nov. 22–23 summit in Johannesburg.
- South Africa’s foreign ministry called the move regrettable and said claims of persecution of white Afrikaners are not substantiated by fact.
- The decision escalates a months-long rift that has included a U.S. pause on aid to South Africa and Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s earlier boycott of a G20 foreign ministers’ meeting.
- The administration last week set a record-low refugee cap of 7,500 for fiscal 2026, with most slots designated for white South Africans, according to a Federal Register notice.
- The U.S. is due to assume the G20 presidency after the Johannesburg meeting, and Trump has announced plans to host the 2026 summit at his Doral resort in Miami.