Minister in the presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni says the government has not been aware of the US’s reported move to ban its agencies from all work regarding the Group of 20 (G20) in SA.
The move was first reported by The Washington Post on Wednesday, citing unnamed officials from the White House regarding the decision to withdraw participation in SA’s G20 presidency.
“We have sous-sherpas and sherpas where that information would’ve been received. We have not received any official communication from the US,” Ntshavheni said in a post-cabinet media briefing on Thursday.
The move follows repeated threats by US President Donald Trump, most recently on Monday, to not attend the G20 leaders summit scheduled for November in Johannesburg, citing misinformation about a “white genocide” in SA.
SA is due to hand over the presidency of the multilateral body to the US in November. During SA’s presidency, the members of the G20 troika are Brazil, SA and the US.
The presidency said next week’s four-day working visit by President Cyril Ramaphosa to the US was a platform to “reset the strategic relationship” between Pretoria and Washington, which has been characterised by friction since Trump was inaugurated in January.
Trump has criticised the “horrible things” he claims are happening in SA, but Ntshavheni said in reply to questions she expected the meeting between President Cyril Ramaphosa and Trump to be cordial.
“We are not going to the US on our own. We have been invited by President Trump so there is no-one who invites a guest to mistreat them. We are expecting the highest level of decorum and protocols. It doesn't mean that we will agree on all matters but we believe our relationship with the US is mutually beneficial. There are more than 600 US companies in the country. SA companies are also invested in the US. We also have that which the US will require — the critical minerals.
“We are confident that the invitation comes from a good place of intending an engagement, clarification and mechanism of finding engagement. We expect very cordial discussions,” Ntshavheni said, but insisted that SA, as a sovereign state, would not be bullied, as Ramaphosa has said. “We remain in that mode,” the minister said.
SA would offer a package to the US that would also be beneficial to SA.
The Trump administration has taken a hardline stance towards SA, halting all aid — including health and climate funding — citing SA’s land expropriation policies. Trump has also been critical of SA’s decision to take Israel to the International Court of Justice over claims of genocide in Gaza.
The SA government has pushed back against Trump’s moves while keeping diplomatic channels open for engagement.
At a media briefing earlier in the week, international relations and co-operation minister Ronald Lamola said it was up to Trump whether he would attend the G20 leaders summit scheduled for November in Johannesburg.
Lamola, however, said the US had had high-level representation during G20 meetings, including the April meeting of the bloc's finance ministers and central bank governors that US treasury secretary Scott Bessent attended.
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