China tries to keep G20 focus on global economy, but Syrian conflict, regional tensions in Asia rise to the fore
President Xi Jinping wants Hangzhou summit to tackle growing protectionism threatening world trade, but observers fear forum will be short on concrete agreements
G20 leaders met on Monday under pressure to reboot the world economy, but a stumbling push for a Syria ceasefire and Asia’s heated territorial disputes intruded on the summit in Hangzhou.
There had been hopes of a breakthrough in stemming the Syria conflict after the US said it was close to a deal with Russia, but frantic diplomacy ended in failure, with Moscow accused of backtracking.
A US official said “differences remain” despite two rounds of talks between Secretary of State John Kerry and his counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the summit.
Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin also met on Monday, but it was far from clear that they could find agreement on the intractable five-year crisis, in which the two support different sides.
The Group of 20 developed and emerging economies, this year gathering in a scenic eastern Chinese city that is largely deserted under a sweeping security operation, represents 85 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product and two-thirds of its population.
China’s President Xi Jinping has urged the leaders to avoid “empty talk” and confront rising protectionism that threatens globalisation and free trade.