JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- The South African Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has officially handed over the presidency of the Group of 20 (G20) to the United States, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported Tuesday.
"The handover of the G20 presidency from South Africa to the United States has taken place in Pretoria, but was shrouded in secrecy," the country's public broadcaster said in its report, noting that the foreign ministry did not disclose the identities of the officials who attended the handover.
"The agreement is that we should do it low-key. It's not just a South African issue; the U.S. doesn't want a very big handover event," South Africa's G20 Sherpa and Director-General of DIRCO Zane Dangor said Monday, adding that the handover would be conducted at the level of a senior DIRCO official to the U.S. charge d'affaires.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Sunday formally closed the G20 summit in Johannesburg by striking a wooden gavel, following G20 tradition.
"This gavel of this G20 summit formally closes this summit and now moves on to the next president of the G20, which is the United States, where we shall see each other again next year," Ramaphosa said in his closing remarks.
Normally, the gavel is handed to the leader of the next presidency. However, Vincent Magwenya, spokesperson for President Ramaphosa, said Saturday that the South African president will not hand it over to a junior embassy official. "It's a breach of protocol that is not going to be accommodated or allowed in this instance. It is a position of principle."
"America chose to boycott the summit. That is their choice, and that is their prerogative to do so. But what cannot happen is a breach of protocol being forced," Magwenya noted.
The United States boycotted the summit by sending no U.S. officials to the G20 summit, citing alleged ill-treatment of Afrikaners and "genocide," a claim strongly rejected by South Africa.
The United States is scheduled to formally take over the presidency on Dec. 1. ■