G20 Gathers in South Africa, U. S. Absent but Climate Talks Heat Up

Leaders from the world's 20 biggest economies met in Johannesburg this weekend, but one major player was missing: the United States. The U. S. skipped the summit due to some old and not very convincing claims about South Africa. This left the other countries to discuss important topics like climate change and how to help poorer nations deal with its effects. The group had already prepared a draft statement before the meeting, and it included sections on climate change. This was a bit surprising because the U. S. government has been against including such topics in these discussions. The U. S. president has even questioned whether human activities are causing global warming, despite what most scientists say. The summit's main topics were about preparing for extreme weather events, moving to cleaner energy sources, and making sure countries that produce important minerals for green technology are treated fairly. The fourth big topic was about finding a better way for poorer countries to borrow money. Some people think the U. S. boycott might actually help South Africa. If the other countries can agree on a strong statement, it could show that multilateral talks can still make progress even without the U. S. involved. However, it's not clear what changes were made to the language to get everyone to agree, especially since the U. S. had objected to talking about climate change or renewable energy. South Africa will pass the presidency of the G20 to the U. S. in 2026, but the country's president said he would symbolically hand over the role to an "empty chair" since the U. S. won't be sending its president or a high-ranking official to the handover.