ATLANTA (AP) — Top diplomats from the Group of 20 largest global economies concluded two days of negotiations Saturday without reaching consensus on several critical global security issues after divisions, including over The war between Russia and Ukrainevisibly overshadowed the start of the Atlanta meeting and also had an impact on its outcome.
As a result, the group did not issue a joint statement but relied on a presidential statement summarizing the negotiations, issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio after the meetings concluded.
This statement made no mention of the agreements reached. Rather, it referred to a list of priorities, ranging from energy and food security to freedom of navigation, that G20 members considered important to resolve.
“I would not pretend today that we are close to finding universally accepted solutions to these problems,” Rubio told reporters at a news conference marking the end of the meetings.
“But,” he said, “I think among the G20 countries represented here, there are countries that are working together to resolve some of these, particularly in the area of supply chains and critical minerals.”
Rubio said the first day of the session was “very productive.” On Saturday, he held side talks with his counterparts from Australia, India and Japan before leading the latest G20 event focused on freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red, Black and South China seas.
“I have made it clear to our partners that secure supply chains are essential for growth,” Rubio said in a social media post on
At a reception for G20 participants Friday evening, Rubio sounded optimistic. “Together, I believe we are shaping a vibrant, dynamic and bold economic future that will usher in new horizons for the entire world,” he said.
The traditional group photo has been canceled
Rubio opened negotiations Friday with a call for unity, but then canceled the traditional group photo of foreign ministers. European diplomats opposed the inclusion of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and threatened to boycott or withdraw from the photo.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, who represented his country for the first time as a guest at a G20 meeting, said he was not surprised by the lack of consensus. “We are at war and we have participants in these wars around the table, so it is very difficult to agree on a common line,” he said.
Other participants in the meetings, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the private discussions, said all were in agreement to try to overcome their differences despite the obstacles and to work to make next month’s G20 leaders’ summit, hosted by President Donald Trump in Florida, a success.
These diplomats said a statement by the president had long been planned because of deep differences among participants, including over the war between Russia and Ukraine and the war between the United States and Israel. war against Iran, American rates and the Chinese are moving in the South China Sea. All contributed to peaks in the overall cost of fuel as well as uncertainty regarding trade.
They described the opening session as cordial but said Russia’s position on Ukraine was inflexible, as was its opposition to Poland’s G20 membership. They said the disagreements also included the Trump administration’s decision. do not invite South Africa, member of the G20 despite the objections of others.
Disagreements between G20 partners, even like-minded ones, have also been visible. A joint statement issued after Rubio’s talks with Asia-Pacific ministers made six references to the importance of “Super Intelligence (SI) (asterisk)” in boosting economic growth.
The six asterisks led to a footnote clearly stating that “in Australia, India and Japan, ‘superintelligence’ refers to ‘artificial intelligence.’ Trump renamed it “artificial intelligence” at the UN General Assembly in September, saying the phrase seemed false, and ordered the US government to call it “superintelligence”. No other country has taken such a step.
Russia’s presence at the G20 worries Europeans
Before the meeting began, some G20 countries had expressed concern that the United States had invited Russia during its increased attacks on Ukraine, particularly after Trump pushed relations with Ukraine to new lows in lift new sanctions against Moscow and temporarily limit logistical and intelligence assistance.
However, the State Department announced Friday that it had approved a planned sale of Patriot for $2.1 billion air defense interceptors for Ukraine.
Rubio defended the decision to invite Lavrov to Atlanta and Putin to the summit, saying it would be impossible to resolve the crisis peacefully without speaking to both sides. And yet he offered a sober assessment of the current situation.
“I don’t know if a negotiated peace is achievable in Ukraine,” he said on Saturday. “That’s what we’re trying to find out, but I don’t think anyone here is pretending that we’re close to reaching a negotiated settlement.”
Lavrov said Moscow would not allow a situation in which Ukraine poses a “military threat to the legitimate security interests of the Russian Federation.”
Lavrov has rarely visited NATO member countries since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and severe sanctions were imposed on Moscow. It is not yet clear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will accept Trump’s invitation to attend the summit at Trump’s Miami golf club in December.
The war in Iran looms over the G20
The prospect of a new American military intervention in Iran. This has put the region, including G20 member Saudi Arabia, under tension. Rubio met Friday with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, as well as Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, for whom the country has been a key mediator.
The associated press reported that U.S. officials have asked several Middle Eastern countries and regional allies to prepare for possible new military strikes against Iran after us elections Tuesday and the possibility that Iran will retaliate.
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