White House Asserts No U.S. Delegation to G20 Despite Contradictory Claims

The White House confirmed on Thursday that there will be no U.S. delegation attending the G20 meeting in South Africa, labeling conflicting reports as “fake news.” This statement comes as a response to media assertions suggesting otherwise.

Back in early November, President Trump declared that U.S. officials would not participate in the annual conference due to concerns over human rights violations in South Africa. He stated, “Africans (descendants of Dutch settlers, French and German immigrants) are being murdered, massacred, and their lands and farms illegally confiscated.” He expressed on Truth Social, “No U.S. government official will attend as long as these human rights violations continue.”

Despite this, media narratives and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa claim that the U.S. is sending a delegation to the summit, set to commence on Saturday.

A White House spokesperson dismissed the claims of a delegation, emphasizing “this is fake news.” They noted the chargé d’affaires in Pretoria would attend a handover ceremony, but reiterated that the U.S. would not partake in G20 discussions.

During a G20 event in Johannesburg, Ramaphosa mentioned receiving notifications regarding potential changes in U.S. participation. “We are still in discussions with the United States,” he said, considering this an encouraging step, since he believes that boycotting rarely yields positive results. He added, if the U.S. does not engage, it would be “outside the tent.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Ramaphosa’s office to clarify the White House’s claims, but no response was immediately available.

In previous encounters, tension between Trump and Ramaphosa was evident, especially concerning accusations about violence against white farmers in South Africa. Trump demonstrated visuals supporting his assertions regarding these grave issues.

In November, the State Department had pointed out that the U.S. was assisting South African refugees affected by “state-sponsored discrimination,” a situation South Africa’s government refuted, asserting such claims are unfounded.

Responding to Trump’s Truth Social announcement about the G20 summit, the South African government made clear that categorizing Afrikaners as a solely white group is an oversimplification and that claims of their persecution lack factual grounding.

It’s worth noting that other leaders, including China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, also plan to send delegates instead of attending personally.