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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the Group of Twenty meeting 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 American Absence

The host nation portrayed the two-day event as a victory for global cooperation, 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 have gathered in the face of major obstacles and shown our capacity to come together, even in periods of hardship, to pursue a better world,” Ramaphosa stated in his final address.

Wrapping up his speech, he announced: “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 reconvene next year.” This was Ramaphosa’s only mention of the nation absent from the gathering of the world’s largest economies.

G20 Declaration Highlights Global Warming and Equal Rights

The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday emphasizing the need to address environmental crises and achieve “equal opportunities for all genders.” The Trump government had pulled out of the Paris climate agreement on the initial day of his second term and has reversed many policies designed to tackle discrimination based on gender, race, and sexual orientation.

US Administration Reaction

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

“This, coupled with South Africa’s push to issue a G20 leaders’ declaration, despite consistent and robust US objections, highlights the reality 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 similarly ranked official to officially transfer the G20 presidency to the US at the diplomatic headquarters. Officials had stated it would breach protocol for Ramaphosa to give it to the US acting ambassador.

South Africa’s top diplomat, Ronald Lamola, told reporters: “From us, the ball has moved. We are done. The decision is theirs. Should they choose to engage, we are ready.”

Future Summit and Other Notable Non-Attendances

The 2026 summit is set to occur at the Trump National Doral Miami golf resort, which is under Trump corporate ownership.

Argentina, whose president Javier Milei skipped the summit, also declined to support the communique. Its diplomatic chief, Pablo Quirno, said: “In particular, it deals with the longstanding Middle East conflict in a manner that does not fully reflect its entire intricacy.”

The G20 document read: “We will work for a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in Sudan and the DRC, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ukraine, as well as resolving additional disputes and global hostilities.”

Group of Twenty History

The G20 was established following the Asian financial crisis in 1999, with 19 nations and the European Union. The African Union was added in 2023.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum were also absent from the summit. The Russian president faces an arrest warrant 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 premier, Li Qiang.