Cape Town – President Cyril Ramaphosa has refused to hand over South Africa’s G20 Presidency to a US chargé d’affaires, following Washington’s decision to send a low-level delegation to the Johannesburg summit.
In diplomatic practice, a chargé d’affaires is the lowest-ranking head of mission and is seen as a temporary or junior representative. Pretoria views the G20 handover as a high-level ceremonial event and had expected a senior US representative.
Late on Thursday, Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the president would not oversee a G20 handover ceremony attended only by a US chargé d’affaires.
“The President will not hand over to a Charge’ d’ Affaires,” he wrote.
The President will not hand over to a Charge’ d’ Affaires.
— Vincent Magwenya 🇿🇦 (@SpokespersonRSA) November 20, 2025
The statement came after the United States quietly reversed its earlier full boycott, confirming that a small delegation led by chargé d’affaires Marc D Dillard would now attend.
The US currently has no ambassador in South Africa, with its ambassador-designate yet to assume office.
The move has heightened tensions between Pretoria and Washington, particularly after a US White House press statement criticised Ramaphosa.
It remains unclear whether the US will upgrade its delegation or if South Africa will modify the handover ceremony.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
