₦airaland Forum

World Leaders Arrivals at the Summit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vEbbYkwfh0?si=gtfCO9yYE8dDuVax

A Group of 20 (G20) leaders' summit in South Africa adopted a declaration addressing the climate crisis and other global challenges on Saturday after it was drafted without U.S. input in a move a White House official called "shameful".

The declaration, using language to which Washington has been opposed, "can't be renegotiated," South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson told reporters, reflecting strains between Pretoria and the Trump administration over the event.

"We had the entire year of working towards this adoption and the past week has been quite intense," spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said.

Ramaphosa, host of this weekend's gathering of Group of 20 leaders in Johannesburg, had earlier said there was "overwhelming consensus" for a summit declaration. But at the last minute Argentina, whose far-right President Javier Milei is a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, quit the negotiations right before the envoys were about to adopt the draft text, South African officials said.

"Argentina, although it cannot endorse the declaration ... remains fully committed to the spirit of cooperation that has defined the G20 since its conception," its foreign minister Pablo Quirno said at the summit. Ramaphosa noted this, but went ahead with it anyway.

In explanation, Quirno said Argentina was concerned about how the document referred to geopolitical issues. "Specifically it addresses the longstanding Middle East conflict in a manner that fails to capture its full complexity," he said. The document mentions the conflict once, saying members agree to work for a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace in ... the Occupied Palestinian Territory".

DECLARATION MENTIONS CLIMATE CHANGE

Envoys from the G20 - which brings together the world's major economies - drew up a draft leaders' declaration on Friday without U.S. involvement, four sources familiar with the matter said.

“It is a longstanding G20 tradition to issue only consensus deliverables, and it is shameful that the South African government is now trying to depart from this standard practice," a senior Trump administration official said on Friday.

The declaration used the kind of language long disliked by the U.S. administration: stressing the seriousness of climate change and the need to better adapt to it, praising ambitious targets to boost renewable energy and noting the punishing levels of debt service suffered by poor countries.

The mention of climate change was a snub to Trump, who doubts the scientific consensus that global warming is caused by human activities. U.S. officials had indicated they would oppose any reference to it in the declaration.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

SA Foreign Minister on the Declaration

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rNjx_X-bLY?si=A-fRjxat9Jx6cvsw

In opening remarks to the summit, Ramaphosa said: "We should not allow anything to diminish the value, the stature and the impact of the first African G20 presidency".
His bold tone was a striking contrast to his subdued decorum during his visit to the White House in May, in which he endured Trump repeating a false claim that there was a genocide of white farmers in South Africa, brushing aside Ramaphosa's efforts to correct his facts.

Trump said U.S. officials would not attend the summit because of allegations, widely discredited, that the host country's Black majority government persecutes its white minority.

TRUMP REJECTS SOUTH AFRICA'S G20 AGENDA

The summit came at a time of heightened tensions between world powers over Russia's war in Ukraine and fraught climate negotiations at the COP30 in Brazil.

"While the G20 diversity sometimes presents challenges, it also underscores the importance of finding common ground," Japan Cabinet Public Affairs Secretary Maki Kobayashi told Reuters.

Commenting on Argentina's absence from the final envoy meeting to agree on the text, Magwenya said: "Argentina (had) been participating quite meaningfully ... in all the deliberations," then never showed up to endorse the declaration on Friday. He added: "We have what we call sufficient consensus."

G20 Leaders Take Family Photos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMx2wN1WXbw?si=z8Ok4pWc8_JsYYPt

The U.S. president had also rejected the host nation's agenda of promoting solidarity and helping developing nations adapt to weather disasters, transition to clean energy and cut their excessive debt costs.

"This G20 is not about the U.S.", South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola told public broadcaster SABC. "We are all equal members of the G20. What it means is that we need to take a decision. Those of us who are here have decided this is where the world must go."

But in a sign of the many geopolitical fissures underlying the agreed text, EU Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen warned in a speech about the "the weaponisation of dependencies" which she said "only creates losers".

This was an apparent veiled reference to China's export curbs on rare earths vital for the world's energy transition, as well as defence and digital technology.

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". The South African presidency on Saturday reiterated its rejection of a U.S. offer to send the U.S. charge d'affaires for the G20 handover. "The president will not hand over to a junior embassy official the presidency of the G20. It's a breach of protocol that is not going to be accommodated," Magwenya said.

Lamola later said that South Africa would assign a diplomat of the same rank as a charge d'affaires to hand over the G20 presidency at the foreign affairs department.

It's really a shameful summit. Climate change is a big issue but the biggest issue is security, not in the middle East, but Nigeria!

Any summit without the US input is as good as a jamboree.

Shameful.

"It's a beautiful word, but an old-fashioned word."

Seems like Trump just heard of the word.

Just for a peak:

Those 20+ leaders from mostly very digrraced nations, will still trade in dollars.

Very shameful even though I hate trump but he’s right on this one😒

Crowd of clowns.

This is the type of meeting that Nigeria likes to shine in.

If the US falls behind Trump has a big role in that failure.
Great leaders will always put national interest ahead of personal interest

Meanwhile, if you are a tech professional, check this out: https://www.nairaland.com/8567076/club-tech-professionals#137566764

What has the world leaders of today solved without Mr. Trump input or impact. They only know how to scatter and not how to build.

donmixc:
Very shameful even though I hate trump but he’s right on this one😒

Rubbish.
...xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

They better stop climate crisis and other global challenges talk, that's the excuse Buhari used and allowed his brother's to deal with us

South Africa is hosting G20 while the so called giant of Africa is hosting terrorists and bandits..God help Nigeria

The South Africans Leaders have balls

Honestly, the biggest priority of that G20 summit ought to have been GLOBAL Security, especially terrorism sweeping most parts of West Africa and Middle East.


Look at the disgraceful mess the former Giant of Africa is in currently with massive shut down of schools all over the entire North.

The bid to curb 'DEPENDENCY' is a mere wish. If the US weren't important, why the fuse?
The world's dependency on the US isn't ending anytime soon.

You people should let's know after you have deceived yourselves well enough.Empty bluff.How many of these nations are not depending on foreign aids?

They only want to compete with president Donald Trump instead of collaborating with him. To them anything that makes them happy will be to oppose anything the US likes or approves. Let's see how far they will go especially South Africa that is used in doing the dirty jobs.

bestman09:
It's really a shameful summit. Climate change is a big issue but the biggest issue is security, not in the middle East, but Nigeria!

Any summit without the US input is as good as a jamboree.

Why u come Nairaland come dey talk this kind nonsense, u for go twitter were u for dey with your American audience?

Shameful and disgraceful seem to be Mr. Trump’s new favourite words for anything he dislikes.

Sadly, those same words now describe the African Union and ECOWAS. They appear unmoved by the insecurity tearing through Nigeria. If any of these crises were happening in ECOWAS member state, Nigeria would already be discussing how to send help. But when it comes to our own struggles, they stay silent.

Trump is always saying SHAMEFUL.

South Africa stands up to Israel and USA.

That's very commendable

Climate change is not the biggest threat to humanity. It is Islamic terrorism

I support the Trump on this, because what the G20 suppose to be discussing now is about the security, and rise of debt burden plaguing the third world country, instead climate changes.

I got info that the nowdisgraced country was also there

And why was the US government not present in the first place?

Ironically, they would achieve nothing in reality without the US backing whatever resolution they reached.

And funny enough, a certain disgraced nation was in attendance too. To what end, you wonder.

A country where states are shutting down all schools because government is not existing in those areas.

omoredia:
Climate change is not the biggest threat to humanity. It is Islamic terrorism

Islamic terrorists were created by the same USA through USAID according to USA official piers Morgan

USA is an evil entity and the world will not collapse without USA. They can keep their ego to themselves

Get me the names of all those leaders that attended this meeting....

Having this kinda meeting championed by clowns like Macron is like having an estate meeting without the landlord. In other words, it’s all a talk show that leads to nowhere.