The absence of Secretary of State Marco Rubio hung over the year’s first high-level meeting of the world’s largest economies, with diplomats fretting over turbulent times.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has arrived in South Africa for a two-day meeting of the Group of 20 nations, where top European diplomats are expected to reinforce their support for Ukraine.

South Africa concluded the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting, after a range of global issues having been discussed.South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola hailed the event as historic when briefing the media after the meeting,

The two day meeting consists of finance ministers and central bank governors and takes place from 26-27 of February.

U.S. President Donald Trump's envoy for the Ukraine conflict met President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv on Thursday but there was no immediate word on whether their talks had helped smooth over an unprecedented wartime rift between the once firm allies, and key U.S. officials indicated that major frustrations remain.

Finance Track meetings kicked off Monday in Cape Town, the legislative capital of South Africa, with discussions focusing on the challenges and constraints to growth in developing countries, particularly in African countries.

Despite the warm welcome foreign dignitaries received at the meeting in Johannesburg, hosted by current G20 president South Africa, tensions were apparent before the event even got underway.

As South Africa takes the helm of the G20 Presidency in 2025, there is widespread curiosity about the nation’s agenda and whether nuclear energy will feature prominently in these critical discussions,

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa opened on Thursday a Group of 20 foreign ministers meeting with a call for "cooperation" amid geopolitical tensions and "rising intolerance".