MK sport G20 Foreign Minister Meeting convenes at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on February 20, 2025. Photo: VCG" src="https://www.globaltimes.cn/Portals/0/attachment/2025/2025-02-20/098daf75-86ae-436c-9f7c-3161d0616b5c.jpeg" />

The G20 Foreign Minister Meeting convenes at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on February 20, 2025. Photo: VCG

Director-General of the South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation Zane Dangor speaks to journalists ahead of the G20 Foreign Minister Meeting at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa on February 20, 2025. Photo: AFP

 
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to attend the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, from Thursday to Friday.

This year's meeting is convened at a critical juncture, amid ongoing conflicts in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and is further complicated by the absence of the US. Experts suggest that the meeting presents both challenges and opportunities for member countries in finding common ground on complex issues and advocating for a more equitable international order. 

The two-day meeting marks the first time that an African country presides over the international forum, under the theme "Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability," according to the Turkey's Anadolu Agency. 

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio skipped the meeting of G20 foreign ministers after criticizing host South Africa's policies as anti-American, according to AP.

The US will be represented by Dana Brown, the deputy chief of mission at the American embassy in Pretoria, AFP reported. 

Guo Jiakun, spokesperson from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Thursday that we will not comment on the decisions made by the US, when asked if the US absence will turn G20 into G19.

"We have released information on Foreign Minister Wang Yi's attendance at the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in South Africa.  We believe that as the premier platform for international economic cooperation, the G20 needs to advocate the spirit of partnership, pool efforts to promote global economic growth, set the pace in making global governance more just and equitable, and help countries achieve common development and prosperity," said Guo.

He noted that China will continue to support South Africa's G20 Presidency. 

Speaking about the US objection of South Africa's G20 theme, South Africa's foreign minister Ronald Lamola told Reuters earlier that "the agenda will stand," adding that all G20 nations had previously agreed on it. "We will not be defocused by this issue (with) ... the US."

 US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday he will skip next week's meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 major economies in Cape Town, South Africa, per Reuters. 

After the new administration took office, the US has shown lukewarm interest in multilateral cooperation, which has also brought the G20 to a very challenging moment, said Zhu Jiejin, a professor of global governance studies at Fudan University. He noted that the US absence from G20 meetings will create hurdles for member countries' cooperation and the formation of a cohesive consensus.

However, regarding the question whether global governance could be paralyzed without the US or whether other members of the international community will strive to find common ground and push for multilateralism, this year's G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting will be a test, Zhu added.

South Africa's G20 Sous Sherpas, Ambassador Xolisa Mabhongo and Advocate Nokukhanya Jele, confirmed that over 30 countries will be represented at the meeting, according to Anadolu Agency. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Indian counterparts have confirmed their attendance. European diplomats including France's Jean-Noel Barrot and the UK's David Lammy will also be present, according to France 24. 

South Africa's G20 presidency will prioritize "disaster resilience, debt sustainability, just energy transition, and critical minerals for inclusive growth," Mabhongo said in a news briefing on Wednesday, Anadolu Agency reported.

Wars and conflicts in Africa and Europe would be common themes, Mabhongo said, according to AFP.

Promoting multilateralism

When asked what China's expectation was of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting, Guo said at a press conference on February 10 that China stands ready to work with all parties to make this meeting a productive one, and send a strong message of supporting multilateralism, strengthening solidarity and cooperation, and jointly responding to global challenges.

During the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting, China's commitment to multilateralism will starkly contrast with the US "American first" policy, said Zhu, noting that China's role in this meeting will become even more prominent.

This year's G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting confronts international issues that are more complex than ever before, and how China can play an important role within the G20 is being widely watched, Yang Xiyu, a senior research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times. 

Amid even more complex and severe problems, the questions of how China should make its voice heard and seek the greatest common denominator among member states from the intricate web of relationships and push for a more just international order, present both a challenge and an opportunity for China, said Yang.