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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 US proposal for him to hand over duties to a relatively junior embassy official for the upcoming gathering in Florida.

Event Overshadowed by American Absence

South Africa presented 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 discriminating against white-minority Afrikaners—a claim that has been broadly refuted.

“We’ve met in the face of major obstacles and shown our capacity 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 ceremonial hammer 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.” This was Ramaphosa’s only mention of the country missing from the assembly of major global powers.

Summit Communique Focuses On Global Warming and Gender Equality

The G20 released a statement on Saturday stressing the importance to address environmental crises and achieve “gender equality.” The Trump government had pulled out of the Paris environmental accord on the first day of his second term and has reversed many policies designed to tackle sexism, racism and homophobia.

US Administration Reaction

US administration representative Anna Kelly accused Ramaphosa of “refusing to facilitate a seamless handover of the G20 presidency.”

“This, coupled with South Africa’s effort to release a G20 leaders’ declaration, notwithstanding repeated and strong American opposition, highlights the reality that they have exploited their leadership role to weaken the group’s core values,” she stated.

Transition Procedure Disagreement

South Africa had offered to arrange for an equivalent “junior” diplomat 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 top diplomat, Ronald Lamola, informed the press: “From us, the ball has moved. Our role is complete. The decision is theirs. If they want to come, we are available.”

Upcoming Gathering and Additional Absences

The 2026 summit is set to occur at the Trump-owned 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 foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, said: “In particular, it deals with the protracted Middle Eastern dispute in a manner that does not fully reflect its entire intricacy.”

The G20 communique stated: “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.”

Group of Twenty History

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 Claudia Sheinbaum were also absent from the summit. The Russian president faces an arrest warrant by the international criminal court, to which South Africa is a signatory. The Chinese president has assigned attending many international gatherings this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.