South Africa's President Concludes G20 Summit Following US Boycott and Handover Dispute
The leader of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the Group of Twenty meeting in Johannesburg by striking a gavel, following his refusal of a American suggestion for him to transfer authority to a relatively junior embassy official for the next summit in Florida.
Event Overshadowed by US Boycott
South Africa presented the two-day event as a triumph for multilateralism, but it was overshadowed by a withdrawal of the United States, which has consistently alleged South Africa of showing bias toward white-minority Afrikaners—a claim that has been broadly refuted.
“We’ve met in the face of significant challenges and shown our capacity to unite, even in periods of hardship, to pursue a better world,” the president declared in his final address.
Wrapping up his speech, he announced: “This gavel of this G20 summit formally closes this summit and now proceeds to the subsequent leader of the G20, which is the United States, where we shall reconvene next year.” It represented Ramaphosa’s only mention of the country missing from the assembly of major global powers.
G20 Declaration Focuses On Global Warming and Gender Equality
The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday emphasizing the need to tackle climate change and achieve “equal opportunities for all genders.” Donald Trump’s administration had pulled out of the Paris environmental accord on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures aimed at combating sexism, racism and homophobia.
White House Response
US administration representative Anna Kelly accused Ramaphosa of “declining to enable a seamless handover of the G20 presidency.”
“This, combined with South Africa’s push to issue a G20 leaders’ declaration, notwithstanding repeated and strong American opposition, underscores the fact that they have weaponised their G20 presidency to undermine the G20’s founding principles,” she stated.
Handover Protocol Controversy
South Africa had offered to arrange for an similarly ranked official to formally hand the G20 presidency to the US at the diplomatic headquarters. Officials had stated it would violate procedure for Ramaphosa to pass it to the US acting ambassador.
South Africa’s foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, told reporters: “We have done our part. We are done. It’s up to them. If they want to come, we are available.”
Upcoming Gathering and Other Notable Non-Attendances
The 2026 summit is scheduled to take place at the Trump National Doral Miami golf resort, which is owned by the Trump Organization.
Argentina, whose president Javier Milei did not attend, also declined to support the communique. Its diplomatic chief, Pablo Quirno, said: “Specifically it addresses the longstanding Middle East conflict in a manner that does not fully reflect its full complexity.”
The G20 document read: “We are committed for a fair, inclusive, and enduring resolution in Sudan and the DRC, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ukraine, as well as ending other conflicts and wars around the globe.”
G20 Background
The G20 was established following the Asian economic turmoil in 1999, with 19 nations and the European Union. The AU was incorporated last year.
Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping and Mexico's leader Claudia Sheinbaum were also absent from the summit. Putin is wanted by the international criminal court, to which South Africa is a signatory. Xi has delegated participation in numerous global events this year to China’s premier, Li Qiang.