RAO NARENDER YADAV
Africa finally takes the centre stage by hosting the Group of Twenty (G20) Summit 2025 for the first time in Johannesburg. With the continent home to the youngest populations, some of the fastest-growing economies and some of the most pressing climate and development challenges – Africa’s hosting should have been hailed universally. Yet, U.S President, Donald Trump is unhappy about the global event.
‘It is a total disgrace that the G20 will be held in South Africa,’ says US President.
“Afrikaners are being killed and slaughtered, and their land and farms are being illegally confiscated. No U.S. Government Official will attend as long as these Human Rights abuses continue.” He added that he looks forward to hosting the 2026 G20 Summit in Miami.
Trump’s reaction should be read as more than personal grievance. It underlines a recurring pattern in his approach to global institutions: if the U.S. is not clearly front-and-centre, then the legitimacy of those institutions is often attacked. We’ve seen this with attempts to discredit the United Nations, and with dismissals of climate forums such as the UN Climate Change Conference (COP) process as “hoaxes.”
In this worldview, the United States must play the role of the “big daddy” of global diplomacy – without U.S. endorsement or leadership, no serious negotiation is deemed viable. That attitude suffers when others demand a voice, or when the centre of gravity of global issues shifts beyond American control.
The tension is sharpened by the diplomatic chill following South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s visit to the White House in May 2025, which quickly descended from diplomatic niceties into confrontation. Trump ambushed his South African counterpart with sensational claims of so-called “white genocide” and unlawful land seizures — charges that South Africa has repeatedly rejected as fabricated and politically driven. The atmosphere chilled almost instantly, becoming a defining moment in the broader downturn of U.S.–South Africa relations.
Trump’s unhappiness is not just noise. It reflects a deeper anxiety about a shifting global landscape where the United States no longer commands automatic reverence. His irritation over the continent hosting the G20 is a symptom of that discomfort. For decades, Washington has been accustomed to setting the terms of global economic governance, while Africa has mostly been expected to comply from the margins. Now, with South Africa in a leading role and the entire continent’s priorities shaping key discussions at the summit, the balance of influence is undeniably evolving. Trump’s reaction underscores a fear that the U.S. may have to contend with new voices, new coalitions, and new leadership that do not measure their success through America’s approval. In that sense, his displeasure is not incidental – it reveals precisely why this G20 in Africa matters
The United States will host the G20 in 2026 and Ramaphosa said he would have to hand over the rotating presidency to an “empty chair.”
(Author is a geo-political analyst. Views are personal)