South Africa hosted a new edition of the G20 summit, which concluded with the adoption of a Final Declaration, from Nov. 22-23. The government of President Cyril Ramaphosa did not include a passage explicitly supporting the positions of the Polisario or using the language typically employed by this movement, such as the «self-determination referendum», unlike previous actions during the BRICS summit held in August 2023 in Johannesburg. «We emphasize the need to reach a durable and mutually acceptable political solution to the Western Sahara issue, in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions and in execution of the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO)», the communiqué highlighted at that time. During this BRICS meeting, Pretoria even invited Brahim Ghali to speak before the members of this economic bloc. In contrast, the Final Declaration of the G20 summit, published on Sunday, focuses on other political priorities. Among them are the «establishment of a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and Ukraine, as well as the need to end other conflicts and wars around the world». The text insists that «only peace will allow us to achieve sustainability and prosperity». This setback underscores South Africa's failures in the context of this G20 summit. Prior to the event, the Polisario ally did not succeed in including the separatist movement in the list of its invitees.
