G20 summit LIVE: South Africa says President will not hand G20 to U.S. embassy official

The White House connected Saturday (November 22, 2025) said South Africa was refusing to facilitate a creaseless modulation of its presidency of the Group of 20 large economies to the U.S., aft the G20 issued a declaration connected clime alteration implicit U.S. objections.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa had pushed to contented a G20 leaders’ declaration addressing the clime situation and different planetary challenges “despite accordant and robust U.S. objections.”

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa volition not manus the adjacent presidency of the G20 to a U.S. embassy typical aft U.S. President Donald Trump refused to be this weekend’s summit, the South African authorities said Saturday (November 22, 2025).

The Trump medication has boycotted the Johannesburg gathering that wraps up connected Sunday and said it would nonstop the chargé d’affaires of its U.S. embassy successful South Africa for the handover, with Washington assuming the 2026 presidency of the radical of starring economies.

Mr. Ramaphosa “will not beryllium handing implicit to the complaint d’affaires from the U.S.,” Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola told journalists. “The United States is simply a subordinate of the G20, and if they privation to beryllium represented, they tin inactive nonstop anyone astatine the close level,” helium said.