External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar will visit South Africa to participate in the Group of 20 (G20) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting from February 20-21, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Wednesday.
As per the Ministry of External Affairs, the EAM will visit Johannesburg at the invitation of South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola. The MEA noted that the EAM’s participation in the G20 meeting will further strengthen India’s engagement with the G20 countries and bolster the voice of the Global South in this important forum.
The External Affairs Minister is also expected to hold a few bilateral meetings on the margins of the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. South Africa assumed the G20 Presidency from December 1, 2024, to November 2025.
The G20 comprises 19 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkiye, United Kingdom, and the United States, in addition to two blocs; European Union and the African Union.
The G20 members include the world’s major economies, representing 85 per cent of global Gross Domestic Product, over 75 per cent of international trade, and about two-thirds of the world population. The G20 Presidency rotates annually among the members and is selected from a different regional grouping of countries. Therefore, the 19 member countries are divided into five groups comprising a maximum of four countries each.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier that he would not attend the upcoming G20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, citing concerns over the country’s actions, including expropriating private property. He also criticised South Africa’s use of the G20 platform to promote “solidarity, equality, and sustainability” to promote “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and climate change.”
