G20 powers were yesterday to open two days of summit talks after a stormy buildup dominated by tensions with Russia, and US President Donald Trump’s combative stance on trade and climate fears.
Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin were to be among the world leaders gathering amid high tension over an array of world issues, including the Ukraine conflict, trade with China and relations with Saudi Arabia.
However, the two were not to sit down together after Trump abruptly canceled a planned meeting, citing Russia’s seizure of Ukrainian ships and sailors.
Photo: Reuters
Protesters have vowed mass rallies to harangue the world leaders gathering in crisis-hit Argentina, where recent violence between rival soccer fans has raised questions about the police’s ability to control unrest.
Trump aimed to start the summit with a victory for his “America first” trade agenda by having trade negotiators sign a successor to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Trump has declared it a victory on behalf of the US workers he claims were cheated by NAFTA.
Trump also has China in his sights as he prepares to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on the sidelines of the summit today.
The US has cast talks with Xi as a deadline for China to cave on Trump’s key trade concerns.
The US leader has slapped US$250 billion in tariffs on the Asian power and threatened more to come next month.
The summit will be accompanied by an array of diplomatic initiatives with several bilateral meetings, including ones involving Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel was to miss the summit’s opening after her airplane was forced to make an emergency landing in Cologne, Germany, due to what she called a “serious” a technical problem.
Merkel yesterday eventually took off on a flight from Madrid bound for Buenos Aires.
Her temporary absence could complicate French President Emmanuel Macron’s attempts to build a European front against Trump at a meeting of EU leaders attending the G20 yesterday morning.
Macron on Thursday rejected those who wish to confront economic challenges by being “bellicose, isolationist and closing down borders.”
Among the other leaders at the summit is to be Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, the focus of tensions over the alleged murder of one of his prominent critics in October.
Macron said that he would raise the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi with the crown prince on the sidelines of the summit.
Sources said that climate change was emerging as the biggest stumbling block to agreement on a joint communique when the summit concludes today.
With a major UN meeting on climate change starting next week in Poland, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres yesterday said in Buenos Aires that “this is a make-it-or-break-it moment.”
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft