Conclusion of the G20 Summit in Johannesburg Without Presidential Handover to the U.S.

The G20 leaders' summit, hosted by Johannesburg, South Africa, on Saturday and Sunday, concluded without the ceremonial handover of the rotating presidency to the United States, amid a sharp diplomatic dispute between the two countries regarding the level of U.S. representation at the summit.

The United States boycotted the two-day meeting of leaders from rich and emerging economies in Johannesburg due to allegations from President Donald Trump's administration that South Africa violently persecutes the white Afrikaner minority, which Pretoria strongly denied. Washington sent only the chargé d'affaires at its embassy, Mark De Dillard, to attend the closing session and receive the presidency of the group.

However, South Africa described the U.S. sending its chargé d'affaires to receive the rotating presidency of the summit as an insult to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

South Africa's Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, stated in a press release on Sunday: "The United States is a member of the G20, and if it wanted to have a representative, it could have sent someone at the appropriate level. This is a leaders' summit, and the appropriate level could be a head of state, or a special representative appointed by the president, or a minister."

Lamola confirmed that the absence of high-level U.S. participation prevented the traditional handover ceremony, stating that the South African president would not hand over the presidency to the U.S. chargé d'affaires but would instead transfer it to the United States at any location or ministerial office it chooses within South Africa.

The South African president, the summit's host, attempted to downplay Trump's absence, emphasizing that the G20 remains a key platform for international cooperation. He said, "The G20 highlights the importance of multilateralism... The challenges we face can only be addressed through cooperation and partnership."

However, the summit was affected by the U.S. boycott, as Li Qiang represented China instead of President Xi Jinping, the Kremlin sent official Maxim Oreshkin instead of President Vladimir Putin, and Argentine Foreign Minister Pablo Kerner represented President Javier Milei.

The summit, which is the first of its kind on the African continent and the first in which the African Union participated as a permanent member, witnessed warnings from leaders about geopolitical divisions that threaten the group's role in addressing global economic crises.

French President Emmanuel Macron stated that "the G20 may be on the verge of losing its role," while British Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasized the need to find "constructive ways to address global challenges."

Despite Washington's absence, the leaders adopted a summit declaration addressing climate issues, energy, debt, and strategic minerals, which included a call for a "just" peace in Ukraine, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the occupied Palestinian territories.

However, the U.S.-African dispute cast a shadow over the event, especially with Trump's announcement that the United States would host the next group summit in 2026 at his golf club in Florida.