Merz Pushes Trump To Reverse Decision Blocking South Africa From 2026 G20 Summit

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced on Thursday that he plans to press US President Donald Trump to reconsider his decision to bar South Africa from the 2026 G20 summit in Florida.

Tensions between Washington and Pretoria have escalated over several domestic and foreign policy issues, culminating in the United States skipping last week’s G20 gathering in Johannesburg.

Earlier this year, Trump confronted President Cyril Ramaphosa during a White House meeting, raising debunked claims of a “white genocide” in South Africa.

Merz Says G20 Exclusion Undermines Global Cooperation

On Wednesday, Trump confirmed South Africa would be excluded from the 2026 summit, scheduled to take place at his golf resort in Miami. He justified the move by alleging “horrific Human Rights Abuses” against white South Africans.

“I will try, in my conversations and meetings with the American president… to convince him that it would be good to invite all members of the G20 to America,” Merz told reporters in Berlin.

Merz also expressed disappointment over the absence of the US at the Johannesburg summit, calling the G20 “one of the most important multilateral formats we still have in the world”. He warned that alienating South Africa was not in Washington’s strategic interest.

“The American government is needlessly relinquishing influence, including influence in a part of the world that is becoming increasingly important,” he said.

Rising Diplomatic Rift Between South Africa and the US

South Africa has criticised Trump’s stance, condemning what it describes as “punitive measures… based on misinformation and distortions about our country”.

The diplomatic strain has deepened over Pretoria’s case at the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza, an action that has further irritated Washington.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Vusimuzi ‘Cat’ Matlala Denies ‘Fabricated’ WhatsApp Messages Linking Him To Brown Mogotsi

Trump has also imposed 30 percent tariffs on South Africa — the highest rate levied on any sub-Saharan African nation.

The G20 consists of 19 countries, along with the European Union and the African Union, representing 85 percent of global GDP and two-thirds of the world’s population.

---

For More, Follow SurgeZirc SA On  Facebook, X,  Instagram and Bluesky