Cyril Ramaphosa Wraps Up G20 Summit Amid American Withdrawal and Handover Dispute

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the G20 summit in Johannesburg by striking a gavel, after rejecting a American suggestion for him to hand over duties to a relatively junior embassy official for the next summit in Florida.

Summit Marred by US Boycott

South Africa presented the two-day event as a triumph for multilateralism, but it was overshadowed by a boycott by the US, which has consistently alleged South Africa of showing bias toward white-minority Afrikaners—a claim that has been broadly refuted.

“We have gathered in the face of major obstacles and demonstrated our ability to unite, even in times of great difficulty, to pursue a better world,” the president declared in his closing speech.

Concluding his remarks, he noted: “This ceremonial hammer of this G20 summit formally closes this summit and now moves on 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 Climate Change and Equal Rights

The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday emphasizing the need to address environmental crises and achieve “gender equality.” Donald Trump’s administration had withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures aimed at combating sexism, racism and homophobia.

US Administration Reaction

White House spokesperson Anna Kelly claimed the president of “declining to enable a smooth transition of the G20 presidency.”

“This, coupled with South Africa’s push to issue a G20 summit statement, despite consistent and strong American opposition, highlights the reality that they have exploited their leadership role to undermine the G20’s founding principles,” she stated.

Transition Procedure Disagreement

South Africa had offered to arrange for an similarly ranked official to officially transfer the G20 presidency to the US at the foreign ministry. Authorities explained it would breach protocol for Ramaphosa to give it to the US acting ambassador.

South Africa’s foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, told reporters: “From us, the ball has moved. We are done. It’s up to them. Should they choose to engage, we are ready.”

Future Summit and Other Notable Non-Attendances

The 2026 summit is scheduled to take place at the Trump National Doral Miami golfing facility, 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: “In particular, it deals with 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 Palestinian territories, Ukraine, as well as ending other conflicts and global hostilities.”

G20 Background

The G20 was founded in the wake of the Asian financial crisis in 1999, with 19 nations and the European Union. The African Union was incorporated last year.

The Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mexico's leader Claudia Sheinbaum were also not present at the meeting. Putin is wanted by the ICC, to which South Africa is a member state. The Chinese president has assigned attending many international gatherings this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.