Ramaphosa accuses 'bullying' US of pushing narrow agenda

THE time of using global gatherings to canvas for a “narrow global agenda” has come to an end, says President Cyril Ramaphosa in what appeared to be a response to his US counterpart Donald Trump on Thursday.

Trump, who has boycotted the G20 Summit in the country this weekend, recently warned the South African government not to attempt to adopt a consensus declaration that does not include the position of the US.

In a letter at the weekend, the US formally warned South Africa against pushing for a joint statement without his administration being represented.

Tensions between South Africa and Donald Trump's administration have escalated since the start of the year, culminating in a meeting between the two leaders at the Oval Office in May.

This is where Trump attempted to embarrass Ramaphosa over false accusations of a white genocide in the country.

Since then, Trump has spoken openly about his decision not to attend the global summit, with the American president saying the US would neither participate in preparatory talks before the summit, nor the gathering of world leaders, set for Nasrec in Johannesburg. Trump’s attendance was crucial because his country takes over the G20 presidency next year. 

“The US opposes issuance of any G20 summit outcome document under the premise of a consensus G20 position, without US agreement...If a deliverable is issued under your presidency, it will be framed solely as a chair’s statement to accurately reflect the absence of consensus," the Trump administration recently stat

Ramaphosa, who on Thursday received the declaration from the G20 Social Summit in Boksburg on Thursday, said that there should be no nation that bullies another, as all nations are equally important to the global agenda.

"It cannot be that a country’s geographical location or income level or army determines who has a voice, and who is spoken down to. This means that there should be no bullying of one nation by another nation. We are all equal."

Ramaphosa called for more collaborative efforts to end global inequality.

"When we chose the theme to advance global collaboration, we did not mean a small class of leaders, but that the people be included. This summit is far more than a marketplace of ideas; it is a platform to harness global partnerships....Today, we are counting on this Social Summit to guide the G20. We are relying on this Social Summit to be the reliable, trustworthy compass that ensures the G20 agenda takes the needs and aspirations of all the countries and all the peoples of the world into account," he said.

Cape Times