SOUTH AFRICA: US Agencies Banned From All G20 Work in South Africa, WaPo Report

The Washington Post report that the White House National Security Council has ordered U.S. agencies and departments to suspend work with the Group of 20 conference set to be hosted by South Africa this year, according to people familiar with the matter. Highlights from the article below:

• "The White House National Security Council has ordered U.S. agencies and departments to suspend work with the Group of 20 conference set to be hosted by South Africa this year, according to two people familiar with the matter"
• "A White House official referred to Trump's comment Monday accusing South Africa of carrying out a "genocide" against White citizens and saying he would not attend the G-20 leaders' meeting in Johannesburg unless the "situation is taken care of.""
• "South Africa rejects the Trump administration's accusations, saying there is no evidence of persecution or a "White genocide" in the country."
• "One of the biggest skeptics of the G-20 inside the administration is Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who announced his own boycott of a G-20 meeting of foreign minsters in Johannesburg in February."
• "Other parts of the government have been more open to engaging the G-20, said the third U.S. official familiar with the matter."

Frictions between US-South Africa officials have been escalating ahead of President Ramaphosa’s visit to the US next week. Trump has equated efforts by the South African government to undo racial inequalities created by apartheid to anti-white discrimination. Other points of dispute between the US and South Africa include Pretoria’s decision to file a case in the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of committing a genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and South Africa’s close ties with Iran.