WASHINGTON – The United States formally assumed the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 (G20) on December 1, 2025, pledging to steer the influential economic forum back to its foundational goals of fostering global growth and prosperity, while sidelining what the Trump administration described as "bureaucratic overreach" from recent years. The transition, occurring just days after a contentious handover from South Africa, underscores deepening geopolitical rifts within the bloc, particularly over human rights, climate agendas, and multilateral norms.
Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, the U.S. outlined three priority themes: reducing regulatory burdens to unleash economic potential, securing affordable and resilient energy supply chains, and advancing technological innovations to drive future prosperity.
In an official statement, the State Department declared: “Under President Trump’s leadership, we will return the G20 to focusing on its core mission of driving economic growth and prosperity to produce results. As we usher in these much-needed reforms, we will prioritize three core themes: unleashing economic prosperity by limiting regulatory burdens, unlocking affordable and secure energy supply chains, and pioneering new technologies and innovations.”
The G20, comprising 19 major economies plus the European Union and the African Union, represents about 85% of global GDP and two-thirds of the world’s population. Founded in 1999 in response to the Asian financial crisis, it rose to prominence during the 2008 global recession and again during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Trump administration and several member states have criticized recent presidencies—especially Brazil in 2024 and South Africa in 2025—for expanding the agenda into social, environmental, and geopolitical issues at the expense of core economic coordination.
The first U.S. priority—cutting regulatory burdens—is expected to focus on streamlining international standards for trade, investment, finance, and manufacturing. Administration officials argue that excessive regulation has suppressed global growth, with domestic U.S. compliance costs alone estimated in the trillions annually. Supporters say deregulation could add 1–2% to global GDP over the coming decade, while critics in Europe and among civil-society groups warn it risks weakening labor rights and environmental protections agreed in earlier G20 summits.
The second pillar—affordable and secure energy supply chains—aims to reduce dependence on single suppliers, particularly China, which dominates processing of critical minerals needed for batteries, renewables, and defense technologies. The agenda emphasizes diversified mining, refining, and logistics investments, including U.S.-backed infrastructure projects in Africa and Latin America. While aligned with energy-security concerns shared by Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Australia, this approach deliberately downplays binding emissions-reduction targets, marking a clear departure from the climate-heavy focus of the past five years.
The third theme—pioneering new technologies and innovations—places artificial intelligence, quantum computing, semiconductors, and biotechnology at the center of discussions. The U.S. intends to launch public-private partnerships to assess AI’s economic impact, address workforce displacement (with hundreds of millions of jobs potentially affected worldwide by 2030), and beyond), and promote transparent financing for digital infrastructure in emerging markets.
The highlight of the American presidency will be the G20 Leaders’ Summit scheduled for December 14–15, 2026, at Trump National Doral Miami in Florida. The choice of venue, announced in September 2025, coincides with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Miami city officials project hundreds of millions of dollars in direct economic benefits from hosting thousands of delegates, staff, security personnel, and media.
Yet the launch of the U.S. presidency has been overshadowed by an extraordinary public dispute with the outgoing host, South Africa. On November 26, President Trump announced that South Africa would not be invited to the 2026 summit and accused its government of human-rights violations against white farmers and of mishandling the ceremonial transfer of the G20 presidency. The U.S. boycotted the closing events of South Africa’s term in Johannesburg—the first G20 summit ever held in Africa—with neither Vice President JD Vance nor Secretary of State Marco Rubio in attendance.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa described the exclusion as “regrettable and punitive,” rejecting the accusations as based on misinformation. Pretoria insisted that, in the absence of senior U.S. representatives, the symbolic gavel was properly transferred to the U.S. chargé d’affaires after the official ceremony, in line with established protocol. Several G20 members, including Germany and Japan, expressed concern over the precedent of excluding a founding member.
The Johannesburg Leaders’ Declaration, adopted by all participants except the absent United States, retained South Africa’s key priorities: a “just energy transition,” debt restructuring for low- and middle-income countries, and deeper integration of the African Union into global governance. Even the low-level U.S. diplomats present signed on to portions addressing supply-chain resilience and food security.
In response to the dispute, President Trump ordered an immediate suspension of all U.S. bilateral aid to South Africa—approximately $700 million annually in health, education, and development programs. The official G20 website was promptly updated with American branding and the slogan “Miami 2026: The Best Is Yet to Come,” replacing South African imagery.
As preparatory meetings begin in Washington, New York, and Miami throughout 2026, the U.S. agenda will face its first tests at finance ministers’ and sherpas’ gatherings early next year. Success will depend on whether the Trump administration can rally enough members around its growth-first, deregulation-oriented vision while managing fallout from the South Africa rift.
With global trade growth sluggish, debt pressures mounting in the developing world, and technological disruption accelerating, the stakes for the G20 remain high. Whether the Miami summit in America’s semiquincentennial year delivers tangible economic coordination or becomes another arena for geopolitical confrontation will shape the forum’s relevance for years to come.
