The German chancellor, as the summit's host, must seek consensus among the G20 leaders on a range of contentious issues including climate change, immigration and trade.
Leaders of the world’s richest countries arrived in Hamburg on Thursday (July 6) for the G20 summit. Among them was Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel ahead of the two-day event.
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The tension was palpable. Relations have soured in recent months after Germany blocked rallies that aimed to drum up support for Erdogan among the Turkish diaspora.
Merkel also met for an hour with US President Donald Trump.
Their relationship has been frosty from the start, and Merkel took a swipe at Trump’s isolationist policies in a speech just last week.
The two have been at odds on virtually every hot topic, from immigration to climate change and trade – issues on which Merkel, as the host, must now seek consensus among the G20 leaders.