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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa formally concluded 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.

Summit Marred by American Absence

The host nation portrayed the two-day event as a victory for global cooperation, 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 shown our capacity to unite, even in times of great difficulty, to strive for global improvement,” Ramaphosa stated in his final address.

Concluding his remarks, he noted: “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.” This was Ramaphosa’s only mention of the nation absent from the gathering of the world’s largest economies.

G20 Declaration Highlights Climate Change and Equal Rights

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 climate agreement on the first day of his second term and has reversed many policies designed to tackle sexism, racism and homophobia.

White House Response

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

“This, combined with South Africa’s push to issue a G20 summit statement, notwithstanding repeated and strong American opposition, 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 offered to arrange for an similarly ranked official to formally hand the G20 presidency to the US at the foreign ministry. Authorities explained it would breach protocol for Ramaphosa to pass 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 set to occur at the Trump-owned Doral Miami golf resort, which is owned by the Trump Organization.

The nation of Argentina, led by President Javier Milei skipped the summit, also declined to support the declaration. Its foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, commented: “Specifically it addresses the longstanding Middle East conflict in a manner that does not fully reflect its full complexity.”

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.”

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.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum were also not present at the meeting. The Russian president faces an arrest warrant by the ICC, to which South Africa is a member state. Xi has delegated participation in numerous global events this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.