Secretary of State Marco Rubio has accused Pretoria of going in opposition to Washington on “subject after subject after subject”
The US won’t take part in upcoming G20 occasions hosted by South Africa, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on Tuesday.
The choice, first reported by the media final week, comes amid rising tensions between the 2 nations. The administration of US President Donald Trump has accused South Africa of enabling what it referred to as a racially motivated “genocide,” a declare President Cyril Ramaphosa has dismissed as a “utterly false narrative.”
Talking earlier than the Senate International Relations Committee, Rubio cited a number of causes for the boycott, together with that the agenda of the occasions fails to “replicate the priorities of this administration.” He added that South Africa broadly aligns itself with international locations comparable to Iran and China, which the US views as strategic rivals.
”When one nation is persistently unaligned with the US on subject after subject after subject after subject – now it’s a must to make conclusions about it,” the secretary of state stated.
Rubio additionally criticized Pretoria’s stance on Israel, describing it as “not simply off steadiness however utterly geared in direction of one aspect.”
In 2023, South Africa filed a case on the Worldwide Court docket of Justice accusing Israel of genocide over its navy actions in Gaza. The courtroom issued an injunction in opposition to Israel in January 2024, which the Israeli authorities has ignored.
The hostilities had been triggered by a lethal October 2023 incursion led by the Palestinian militant group Hamas and has since escalated right into a broader regional disaster. Israeli officers have described their lately relaunched navy marketing campaign as an effort to “conquer” Gaza.
Rubio’s remarks got here as Ramaphosa arrived in Washington in an effort to “reset and revitalize bilateral relations,” based on a press release from his workplace. The South African chief is predicted to fulfill President Trump on Wednesday to debate commerce proposals put ahead by his authorities.
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