ATLANTA: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will host his G20 counterparts, including Russia’s Sergei Lavrov, for talks on Friday (Oct 30) that are expected to be fractious, with wars in Ukraine and Iran and surging energy prices fanning discord.
The foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, taking place just days before crucial US midterm elections, will set the stage for a December G20 leaders’ summit in Miami at President Donald Trump’s Doral resort.
Few breakthroughs are expected this week from the Group of 20 economies – which include China, India, Russia, Japan, Germany and France – as officials face divisions over Moscow’s war on Ukraine and fallout from conflict with Iran.
Russia has been shunned by most of the West after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and Lavrov himself remains under international sanctions.
Rubio’s encounter with Lavrov – whose presence adds an additional layer of tension – will be closely watched as Washington pursues diplomacy on Ukraine while seeking Moscow’s cooperation on reining in fuel prices, a key campaign issue in the midterms.
“The G20 is no longer really a forum where foreign ministers can reach agreement on a statement,” a diplomatic source said.
The source added that the US G20 presidency intends for Miami’s summit to serve “more as a demonstration of American power – and of US commitments to growth, deregulation, trade and business – rather than as a summit with grand ambitions on substantive issues”.
Instead of a final declaration, the source expects a chair summary drafted by the United States to be published from this week’s meeting.
The Trump administration, which is set to hand the rotating G20 leadership to Britain, sees the platform as having strayed from its core mission.
Washington has pledged to return the grouping to its goal of driving economic growth, arguing that security and economic prosperity are “inextricably linked”.
“Conversations in Atlanta will provide an opportunity to discuss energy and supply chain challenges as well as identify ways to collectively address the impact of geopolitical tensions on economic security,” a US State Department official said.
They stressed the importance of energy access – necessary for tech like artificial intelligence – and flagged a “shared resolve to confront urgent crises and keep critical sea lanes open to commerce without threats or tolls”.
