Victory for multilateralism at SA’s G20

BRAZILIAN President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva launched a scathing criticism on his US counterpart Donald Trump saying boycotting the G20 Summit in South Africa at the weekend was his latest attempt to practically advocate for the end of multilateralism.

He told reporters that emerging economies and the Global South were becoming more important in the G20.

"If anyone thought they could weaken multilateralism, these events, both at the COP (UN climate talks in Brazil) and here in South Africa, demonstrate that multilateralism is more alive than ever. (Trump) is trying to practically advocate for the end of multilateralism, strengthening unilateralism," he said, adding that  "together we are much stronger... and it is easier to solve the world's problems".

Dozens of leaders from key economies around the world - including Europe, China, India, Japan, Turkey, Brazil and Australia - attended the summit, the first to be held in Africa.

The G20, comprising 19 nations plus the European Union and the African Union, was founded in the wake of the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, and its original mission was to boost global economic and financial stability.

Trump's government snubbed the event, saying South Africa's priorities - including cooperation on trade and climate - ran counter to its policies.

Trump's officials have also made unfounded accusations of a "white genocide" in South Africa.

The US is to host next year's G20 summit, with Trump planning to hold it at a Florida golf club he owns.

In their G20 statement at the weekend, G20 leaders said their meeting was held "against the backdrop of rising geopolitical and geo-economic competition and instability, heightened conflicts and wars, deepening inequality, increasing global economic uncertainty and fragmentation".

President Cyril Ramaphosa said, just before bringing the gavel down on the summit, that the meeting took place "at a crucial time, as calls around the world grow louder for progress on the imperatives of our time".

Despite challenges to international cooperation, Ramaphosa said a joint declaration by G20 leaders issued early in the meeting "reaffirms our renewed commitment to multilateral cooperation and our recognition that our shared goals outweigh our differences".

“At the heart of our Presidency lies a conviction that the G20 must act boldly, and act together, to create an environment of inclusive growth, reduced inequality and sustainable development. South Africa has used this Presidency to place the priorities of Africa and the Global South firmly at the heart of the G20 agenda. Building on the developmental agenda of previous Presidencies in Indonesia, India and Brazil, we have prioritised the issues that matter most to developing economies,” he said. 

Ramaphosa described the Summit Leaders’ Declaration as a commitment to concrete actions that will improve the lives of people in every part of the world. 

“Our agreement on a declaration during this summit demonstrates the value of the G20 as a forum that can facilitate joint action on issues of shared concern.  Together, we must accelerate progress towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals and the Pact for the Future. We have laid the foundation of solidarity; now we must build the walls of justice and the roof of prosperity.” 

His French counterpart Emmanuel Macron had on Saturday warned that "the G20 may be coming to the end of a cycle".

Noting difficulties in finding a common stance on conflicts around the world, he argued it should refocus just on strategic economic issues going forward.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters that: "Too many countries are retreating into geopolitical blocs or the battlegrounds of protectionism…We are not experiencing a transition, but a rupture."

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he thought "it was not a good decision" for America to skip the summit, but "that is for the US government to decide".

"What has really fascinated me a bit here today and yesterday is the fact that you can see that the world is currently reorganising itself and that, here, new connections are being formed," Merz told reporters.

Cape Times