(MENAFN) A widening range of political figures and organisations have voiced their backing for South Africa’s involvement in next year’s G20 Summit, following US President Donald Trump’s Wednesday declaration that Washington intended to bar Pretoria from attending.

Strains between Pretoria and Washington escalated sharply after Trump’s announcement, which included the abrupt halt of all US financial assistance to South Africa.

The FW de Klerk Foundation released a firm statement on Thursday, emphasising that South Africa remains a sovereign and equal participant within the G20, insisting the country “will not be bullied out of global forums by misinformation”.

Issued by Ismail Joosub, the Foundation’s message directly challenged President Trump’s reasoning for the punitive measures, which relied on claims that the South African government disregards “horrific human rights abuses endured by Afrikaners and other descendants”.

This followed Trump’s post on Truth Social, in which he asserted that South Africa was “killing white people and randomly allowing their farms to be taken from them”.

The FW de Klerk Foundation countered by stating that Trump’s assertions of “genocide” and government-backed land confiscations amounted to “wholly false allegations” and a “torrent of disinformation”.

“These statements are not only factually incorrect; they are diplomatically untenable,” the Foundation declared.

It further noted that “G20 membership is not determined by the host country... no single state - including the United States - has the authority to unilaterally expel another.”

The Foundation stressed that the G20 operates on collective agreement, not a “private convention where invitations can be withdrawn on a whim”.

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