Cyril Ramaphosa Wraps Up G20 Summit Amid US Boycott and Handover Dispute

The leader of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the G20 summit in Johannesburg by striking a gavel, 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 American Absence

The host nation portrayed the 48-hour conference as a triumph for multilateralism, but it was diminished 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’ve met in the face of major obstacles and shown our capacity 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 officially concludes 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 assembly of major global powers.

Summit Communique Highlights Climate Change and Equal Rights

The G20 released a statement on Saturday emphasizing the need to tackle climate change 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 Donald Trump’s administration had withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures aimed at combating discrimination based on gender,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 push to issue a G20 leaders’ declaration, notwithstanding repeated and robust US objections, highlights the reality that they have exploited their leadership role to weaken the group’s core values,” she remarked.

Handover Protocol Controversy

South Africa had proposed to organize for an similarly ranked official to formally hand the G20 presidency to the US at the diplomatic headquarters. Authorities explained 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. Should they choose to engage, we are ready.”

Future Summit and Additional Absences

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 skipped the summit, also declined to support the communique. Its foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, said: “In particular, it deals with the longstanding Middle East conflict in a manner that fails to capture its entire intricacy.”

The G20 document read: “We will work for a fair, inclusive, and enduring resolution in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Palestinian territories, Ukraine, as well as resolving additional disputes and global hostilities.”

G20 Background

The G20 was founded in the wake of the Asian economic turmoil in 1999, with 19 countries plus the EU. The African Union was added in 2023.

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 participation in numerous global events this year to China’s premier, Li Qiang.