Putin slams sanctions, protectionism at G20

WORLD LEADERS WELCOME SAUDI CROWN PRINCE AT SUMMIT

G20 leaders opened their annual talks stalked by the deepest divisions since their first summit 10 years ago, with US President Donald Trump under fire for destroying the group’s past consensus on trade and climate change.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, under pressure himself after his security forces seized Ukrainian ships, set the tone by condemning the “vicious” use of sanctions and trade protectionism. The target was clear, as Trump — who cancelled a planned meeting with Putin in Buenos Aires — tears up the stability promoted by the G20 powers when they first convened in November 2008 in the grip of financial crisis.

Hanging over the two-day summit in Buenos Aires is the trade dispute between the US and China, which have imposed tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars on each other’s imports. Beijing hopes to persuade Trump to abandon plans to hike tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25 per cent in January, from 10 per cent at present.

World leaders, meanwhile, welcomed Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman at the summit. Putin welcomed the Crown Prince with a high-five. The Prince also met Trump and his daughter Ivanka, Chinese President Xi Jinping and French President Emmanuel Macron.