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The leader of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa officially closed the G20 summit in Johannesburg by banging a ceremonial hammer, after rejecting a US proposal for him to transfer authority to a lower-ranking embassy official for the next summit in Florida.

Event Overshadowed by American Absence

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 showing bias toward white-minority Afrikaners—a claim that has been widely discredited.

“We have gathered in the face of significant challenges and demonstrated our ability to unite, even in periods of hardship, to pursue a better world,” Ramaphosa stated 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 reconvene next year.” It represented Ramaphosa’s only mention of the nation absent from the gathering of the world’s largest economies.

Summit Communique Highlights Global Warming and Gender Equality

The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday stressing the importance to tackle climate change and achieve “equal opportunities for all genders.” The Trump government had withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures designed to tackle discrimination based on gender, race, and sexual orientation.

White House Response

White House spokesperson 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, despite consistent and robust US objections, highlights the reality that they have weaponised their G20 presidency to undermine the G20’s founding principles,” she stated.

Handover Protocol Disagreement

South Africa had offered to arrange for an equivalent “junior” diplomat to formally hand 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 top diplomat, Ronald Lamola, informed the press: “From us, the ball has moved. Our role is complete. It’s up to them. If they want to come, we are available.”

Upcoming Gathering and Other Notable Non-Attendances

The 2026 conference is scheduled to take place at the Trump National Doral Miami golfing facility, which is under Trump corporate ownership.

The nation of Argentina, led by President Javier Milei did not attend, also refused to endorse 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 communique stated: “We will work for a fair, inclusive, and enduring resolution in Sudan and the DRC, the Palestinian territories, Ukraine, as well as ending other conflicts and wars around the globe.”

Group of Twenty History

The G20 was founded in the wake of the Asian financial crisis in 1999, with 19 countries plus the EU. The AU was added in 2023.

The Russian leader Vladimir Putin, Chinese President 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 attending many international gatherings this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.