South African (SA) President Cyril Ramaphosa has been disinvited from attending the G7 Summit in France in June due to objections from United States (US) President Donald Trump.
The news was first reported by the French News Agency AFP and has since been confirmed by the Presidency to the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) News.
The US had threatened to boycott the meeting if SA attended.
This follows the US boycott of SA’s G20 Presidency last year amid continued strained relations between Washington and Pretoria.
Presidential Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told SABC News that the reason they were given for the invite withdrawal was due to sustained pressure from the US, including a threat to boycott the event.
France, according to Magwenya, could not risk the absence of a key member from the G7 summit, hence the withdrawal of the invitation which President Emmanuel Macron personally extended to Ramaphosa last year during the G20 summit in Johannesburg.
He said the process to reset the relationship with the US was ongoing and that SA remained committed to engaging in constructive dialogue to resolve whatever disputes they have with SA.
He also said the bilateral relationship with France remained strong.
–SABC–
