China supports South Africa in continuing to participate in the Group of 20 (G20) cooperation, foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Friday.

Guo made the remarks at a regular news briefing when asked to comment on the U.S. statement -- after the country took over the presidency of the G20 this month -- that it would not invite South Africa to participate in the 2026 G20 summit and cooperation within the framework of the G20.

Guo noted that South Africa successfully hosted the G20 Johannesburg Summit last month, which was highly commended by the international community.

The G20 has long been committed to solidarity, cooperation and equal-footed consultation. As a founding member of the G20, South Africa attended all the previous summits and has all along played an important role in the group, Guo said.

"China supports South Africa in continuing to participate in G20 cooperation. We look forward to working with South Africa and all other G20 members to defend multilateralism, promote world economic growth and improve global economic governance," he said.