Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Sept 6: US President Donald Trump has said he would be open to welcoming Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping as observers to the 2026 G20 summit, which he plans to host at his Doral golf resort in Miami.
"That's an interesting question – I'd love them to, if they want to," Trump said on Friday in the Oval Office, when asked about the possibility of Putin and Xi attending. "They can, you know, as observers. I'm not sure they want to be an observer."
Trump confirmed the United States would host the 2026 G20 summit in Miami as part of the country’s 250th anniversary celebrations, marking the first time in nearly two decades that the global economic forum will take place on American soil.
He announced the summit would be held at Trump National Doral, one of his properties in southern Florida, citing its proximity to the airport and its appeal as a venue. "Everybody wants it there... it’s beautiful," he added.
The decision echoes a similar attempt during Trump’s first term, when he proposed to host the 2020 G7 summit at the same location. That plan was later dropped amid criticism that it would amount to the President profiting from public office.
"There’s no money in it," Trump said of the 2026 summit, "but we want to make sure it’s good."
Both Russia and China are full members of the G20. However, since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Putin has skipped the past two summits, instead sending Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in his place. Xi Jinping attended the 2024 summit in Brazil.
Trump also confirmed that he will not attend the 2025 G20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, scheduled for November 22–23. He said Vice-President J.D. Vance will represent the United States instead.
"I won’t be going this year... JD will be going, great Vice President," Trump said, adding that he has had “a lot of problems with” South Africa.
Earlier this year, Trump suspended U.S. aid to South Africa, accusing its government of racial discrimination against White farmers, and announced a policy to support the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees fleeing alleged government-backed land seizures. The move drew sharp international criticism.
In a related protest, secretary of State Marco Rubio also declined to attend the G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Johannesburg, stating in February that “South Africa is doing very bad things.”
The political tensions add a layer of complexity to U.S. engagement with the G20 ahead of Trump's planned hosting of the 2026 forum in Florida.