Rubio, Trump’s top diplomat, to skip G20 over ‘anti-Americanism’
Al Jazeera
US secretary of state says he will not attend talks in South Africa amid spat over land expropriation law.
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he will skip Group of 20 (G20) talks in South Africa amid an escalating spat between Washington and Pretoria over a controversial land expropriation law.
Rubio’s announcement on Wednesday came days after US President Donald Trump threatened to cut aid to South Africa over its passage of legislation allowing the seizure of land without compensation in certain circumstances.
South Africa, which holds the G20 presidency until November 2025, is set to host a meeting of foreign ministers from February 20-21 in Johannesburg.
“South Africa is doing very bad things. Expropriating private property. Using G20 to promote ‘solidarity, equality, [and] sustainability.’ In other words: DEI and climate change,” Rubio said in a post on X.
“My job is to advance America’s national interests, not waste taxpayer money or coddle anti-Americanism.”
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