🔗 Share this article

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the G20 summit in Johannesburg by banging a ceremonial hammer, following his refusal of a US proposal for him to hand over duties to a lower-ranking embassy official for the upcoming gathering in Florida.

Event Overshadowed by US Boycott

The host nation portrayed the 48-hour conference as a triumph for multilateralism, but it was overshadowed by a withdrawal of the United States, which has repeatedly accused South Africa of discriminating against white-minority Afrikaners—a claim that has been widely discredited.

“We’ve met in the face of significant challenges and demonstrated our ability to unite, even in periods of hardship, to strive for global improvement,” the president declared in his final address.

Concluding his remarks, he announced: “This ceremonial hammer of this G20 summit formally closes this summit and now moves on to the next president 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 assembly of major global powers.

G20 Declaration Focuses On Global Warming and Equal Rights

The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday emphasizing the need to address environmental crises and achieve “gender equality.” The Trump government had withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement on the first day of his second term and has reversed many policies aimed at combating sexism, racism and homophobia.

US Administration Reaction

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

“This, combined with South Africa’s effort to release a G20 summit statement, notwithstanding repeated and strong American opposition, underscores the fact that they have weaponised their G20 presidency to weaken the group’s core values,” she stated.

Transition Procedure 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. Officials had stated it would breach protocol for Ramaphosa to give it to the US acting ambassador.

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 conference is set to occur at the Trump-owned Doral Miami golfing facility, which is under Trump corporate ownership.

Argentina, whose president Javier Milei did not attend, also declined to support the declaration. Its diplomatic chief, Pablo Quirno, said: “In particular, it deals with the protracted Middle Eastern dispute in a manner that fails to capture 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 resolving additional disputes and global hostilities.”

G20 Background

The G20 was established following the Asian financial crisis in 1999, with 19 nations and the European Union. The African Union 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 member state. The Chinese president has assigned participation in numerous global events this year to China’s premier, Li Qiang.