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South African President 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 relatively junior embassy official for the upcoming gathering in Florida.

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

“We’ve met in the face of significant challenges and demonstrated our ability to come together, even in periods of hardship, to strive for global improvement,” the president declared in his closing speech.

Concluding his remarks, he announced: “This gavel of this G20 summit officially concludes this summit and now proceeds to the next president of the G20, which is the United States, where we shall see each other again next year.” It represented Ramaphosa’s only mention of the country missing from the assembly of major global powers.

G20 Declaration Highlights Climate Change and Equal Rights

The G20 issued a declaration on Saturday emphasizing the need to tackle climate change and achieve “equal opportunities for all genders.” The Trump government had withdrawn from the Paris environmental accord on the first day of his new mandate and has overturned numerous measures designed to tackle discrimination based on gender,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 “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 robust US objections, highlights the reality that they have exploited their leadership role to undermine the G20’s founding principles,” 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 diplomatic headquarters. Officials had stated it would breach protocol for Ramaphosa to give it to the US interim envoy.

South Africa’s foreign minister, Ronald Lamola, informed the press: “From us, the ball has moved. We are done. The decision is theirs. If they want to come, we are available.”

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 did not attend, also refused to endorse the communique. Its diplomatic chief, Pablo Quirno, said: “Specifically it addresses the protracted Middle Eastern dispute in a manner that does not fully reflect its full complexity.”

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

Group of Twenty History

The G20 was established following the Asian economic turmoil in 1999, with 19 nations and the European Union. The AU was incorporated last year.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mexico's leader Claudia Sheinbaum were also absent from the summit. Putin is wanted by the ICC, to which South Africa is a signatory. Xi has delegated participation in numerous global events this year to China’s prime minister, Li Qiang.