South African scholar: The absence of the United States from the G20 summit reflects its retreat in the field of multilateral cooperation.

South Africa will host the first G20 summit in Africa at the end of this month. However, as preparations for the conference enter a critical stage, the United States has announced that it will not send senior government officials to attend the summit due to disagreements with South Africa's domestic policies. This move has sparked international attention. Patrick Bond, Director of the Centre for Social Change at the University of Johannesburg and an international relations and political economist, said in an interview that the absence of the US reflects its withdrawal from multilateral cooperation. South Africa is very aware of the importance of multilateralism, but President Trump's administration has taken a contrary approach. The US has refused to participate in the 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Brazil, withdrawn from the World Health Organization, and created great chaos through tariffs and financial instability. Despite the controversy surrounding the US's absence, South African public opinion generally believes that the US boycotting the summit is "America's loss" and that the boycott will not affect the success of the conference, as multilateral cooperation will not be halted by the withdrawal of one country.