G20 Foreign Ministers Open Two Days of Talks in Atlanta as Wars in Ukraine and the Middle East Divide Members

Foreign ministers from the world’s 20 largest economies open two days of talks in Atlanta on Friday, with energy, supply chains and shipping routes on the agenda and deep splits over the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East hanging over the meeting.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is hosting the October 30-31 gathering, the State Department said. The department said the United States will work with G20 partners on threats to freedom of navigation, energy and food security, and supply chains, and that the talks will help set the agenda for a leaders’ summit in Miami in December.

Divisions over Ukraine and the Middle East

Reuters reported that deep rifts over the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are likely to block unified actions or statements at the meeting, according to diplomats and analysts it spoke with. The United States holds the rotating G20 presidency this year and has sought to focus allies on trade imbalances and on building a coalition to counter China’s control of critical minerals, but Reuters reported that the wars, and their economic effects, remain the top concern for many members.

The United States has not invited South Africa to the ministerial, Reuters reported, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is attending. The report said even the traditional group photo has caused problems, with some European officials suggesting two separate pictures, one with Lavrov and one without.

Heidi Crebo-Rediker, a former chief economist at the State Department, told Reuters that G20 members are now more split than in the past. She said G7 countries would at least have agreed a coordinated position before coming to the G20 in earlier years, and that no longer happens.

A State Department official told reporters on Thursday that the Atlanta meeting would focus on energy and supply chain challenges, which the official linked to the development of artificial intelligence. The official said four G20 ministerial-level meetings this year had reached some consensus, but more work was needed before the leaders’ summit, according to Reuters.

Energy, minerals and the road to Miami

Rubio has championed the Pax Silica initiative, which Reuters described as an effort to unite G20 countries concerned about China’s dominance in rare earths and other critical minerals. Movement on that front will probably come after Atlanta, analysts told Reuters, pointing to a United States-led statement on excess industrial capacity that some G20 trade ministers signed after the group failed to reach consensus.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she would call for increased support for Ukraine and for progress on accountability measures through a Special Tribunal and a Claims Commission. “Russia must be accountable,” she wrote on X on October 29, according to Reuters.

President Donald Trump’s recent decisions on Russia, including a deal to buy diesel and waiving some sanctions, could also weigh on the talks, Reuters reported, along with Ukraine’s problems with its Starshield satellite services. Some countries may seek to avoid open conflict at the meeting, including Canada, Mexico and India, which are still negotiating trade agreements with the United States, one G20 diplomat told Reuters on condition of anonymity. “Everyone is trying to keep a low profile,” the diplomat said.

Ukraine has not been invited to join the ministers in Atlanta, Reuters reported. Trump is also pushing for a ceasefire in Russia’s war in Ukraine, and Russia, Ukraine and the United States are expected to hold technical-level trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi next month, according to Reuters. The Quad grouping of the United States, India, Japan and Australia is also expected to meet in Atlanta in the coming days. The Atlanta talks fall days before the November 3 midterm elections and amid reports the United States might launch fresh attacks on Iran, Reuters reported.

Reporting based on coverage by Reuters and the United States Department of State.