Cyril Ramaphosa Wraps Up G20 Summit Amid American Withdrawal and Handover Dispute
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the Group of Twenty meeting in Johannesburg by banging a ceremonial hammer, after rejecting a American suggestion for him to hand over duties to a lower-ranking embassy official for the next summit in Florida.
Summit Marred by American Absence
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 widely discredited.
“We have gathered in the face of major obstacles and demonstrated our ability to come together, even in times of great difficulty, to pursue a better world,” the president declared in his closing speech.
Wrapping up his speech, he announced: “This gavel of this G20 summit officially concludes this summit and now proceeds to the subsequent leader of the G20, which is the United States, where we shall see each other again next year.” This was Ramaphosa’s only mention of the nation absent from the gathering of the world’s largest economies.
Summit Communique Highlights Global Warming and Gender Equality
The G20 released a statement on Saturday emphasizing the need to address environmental crises and achieve “equal opportunities for all genders.” Donald Trump’s administration had withdrawn from the Paris environmental accord on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures aimed at combating discrimination based on gender, race, and sexual orientation.
US Administration Reaction
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly accused Ramaphosa of “declining to enable a smooth transition of the G20 presidency.”
“This, combined with South Africa’s effort to release a G20 summit statement, despite consistent and strong American opposition, underscores the fact that they have exploited their leadership role to weaken the group’s core values,” she remarked.
Handover Protocol Disagreement
South Africa had proposed to organize for an equivalent “junior” diplomat to officially transfer the G20 presidency to the US at the foreign ministry. Authorities explained it would violate procedure for Ramaphosa to give it to the US interim envoy.
South Africa’s top diplomat, Ronald Lamola, informed the press: “We have done our part. We are done. The decision is theirs. If they want to come, we are available.”
Future Summit and Other Notable Non-Attendances
The 2026 summit is scheduled to take place at the Trump-owned 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, commented: “Specifically it addresses the protracted Middle Eastern dispute in a manner that does not fully reflect its full complexity.”
The G20 document read: “We are committed for a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in Sudan and the DRC, the Palestinian territories, Ukraine, as well as ending other conflicts and global hostilities.”
G20 Background
The G20 was established following the Asian economic turmoil in 1999, with 19 countries plus the EU. The African Union was incorporated last year.
Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mexico's leader Claudia Sheinbaum were also not present at the meeting. Putin is wanted by the international criminal court, to which South Africa is a signatory. Xi has delegated attending many international gatherings this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.
