Six key takeaways from the G20 summit in Osaka

By Euronews with agencies

Published on 29/06/2019 - 20:40•Updated 02/07/2019 - 11:14

From climate change to trade wars, here are the things you need to know as the annual two-day G20 summit wraps up on Saturday in Osaka, Japan.

From climate change to trade wars, here are the things you need to know as the annual two-day G20 summit wraps up on Saturday in Osaka, Japan:

1) All members recommit to Paris climate deal, except US

All members of the G20 reaffirmed their commitment to the Paris climate deal on Saturday, excluding the United States.

The 19 signatories have agreed on the "irreversibility" of the treaty on climate, signed in Paris in 2015, and have committed to its "complete implementation".

However, the commitment was achieved with difficulty as the members faced opposition from the only G20 member not to sign: the United States.

2) China and US agree to restart trade talks

"We're right back on track and we'll see what happens," Trump told reporters after an 80-minute meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

The US president said that while he would not lift existing import tariffs, he would refrain from slapping new levies on an additional €300 billion worth of Chinese goods.

On Huawei, Trump said the US commerce department would meet in the next few days on whether to take it off a list of firms banned from buying technology from US companies without government approval.

China welcomed the step, as US allegations that the company poses a security threat have poisoned bilateral relations in recent months.

Yet some experts worry that the pause in trade hostilities may not hold. "Even if a truce happens this weekend, a subsequent breakdown of talks followed by further escalation still seems likely," Capital Economics said in a commentary on Friday.

3) Trump offers North Korea's Kim new meeting in demilitarized zone

US President Donald Trump on Saturday proposed a weekend meeting with Kim Jong Un at the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea.

The offer was made in a tweet and North Korea said it had not had an official proposal.

The state news agency KCNA quoted Choe Son Hui, North Korea's first vice-minister of foreign affairs, as saying: "If the Democratic People's Republic of Korea-US summit meetings take place on the division line, as is intended by President Trump, it would serve as another meaningful occasion in further deepening the personal relations between the two leaders and advancing the bilateral relations."

If Trump and Kim do meet, it will be for the third time in just over a year, and four months after their second summit broke down with no progress on US efforts to get North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons.

4) Putin leads attack on liberal Western values

Russian President Vladimir Putin has led repeated attacks against liberal values throughout the G20 summit.

“The liberal idea has become obsolete" and has "outlived its purpose," he told the Financial Times on Thursday ahead of his departure to Japan.

He took aim at the German Chancellor Angela Merkel for allowing a million refugees to enter the country in 2015 during the height of the migrant crisis.

On Saturday, he said western liberal policies on sexuality and gender identity were being forced on people, often children, and that parents who opposed this were "often jailed."

EU Council leader Donald Tusk lashed out against Putin's comments by saying it was, in fact, authoritarianism that was obsolete.

Meanwhile, British singer Elton John accused Putin of hypocrisy for saying that he wanted LGBT people to be happy after reports that gay scenes in "Rocketman", the movie based on the singer's life, had been censored in Russia.

5) Theresa May confronts Putin over Skripal poisoning

British Prime Minister Theresa May confronted Russian President Vladimir Putin over the poisoning of a former Russian spy in the UK last year as the two leaders met at the G20 summit in Japan on Friday.

"The prime minister said that the use of a deadly nerve agent on the streets of Salisbury formed part of a wider pattern of unacceptable behaviour and was a truly despicable act that led to the death of a British citizen, Dawn Sturgess," May's office said in a statement.

Putin confirmed he and May had discussed the issue but provided no details other than denying that Russia has ever had any aggressive intent with regards to anyone.

"She expressed her position in a rather tough manner, yes, this is true," Putin said of his meeting with May on the sidelines of the G20 summit, but added that the meeting was "a small, but positive step in the right direction".

6) Trump stands by Saudi Arabia despite outrage over Khashoggi murder

Details surrounding journalist Jamal Khashoggi's death must be shared by Saudi Arabia, Turkish President Erdogan told a news conference at the G20 summit on Saturday.

Erdogan said a 15-person team that arrived in Istanbul before the killing were responsible and he said there was "no point in looking for perpetrators elsewhere." He also said the killers should be prosecuted in Turkey.

In contrast, US President Donald Trump held a friendly breakfast meeting on Saturday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

“It’s an honour to be with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, a friend of mine - a man who has really done things in the last five years in terms of opening up Saudi Arabia,” Trump said.

Trump said Saudi purchases of military equipment supported at least 1 million US jobs.

He declined to say if he would address Khashoggi's death during his meeting with the Crown Prince.

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