The G20 represents about 80% of the world’s agricultural trade. At the recent summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, affirmed their commitment to free and open trade, a rules based system, and a multilateral order, and confirmed the joint opposition to unnecessary tariffs, trade wars, and unilateral protectionism. It even praised the WTO, which Trump has a major issue with. Essentially, it was a meeting of countries to agree that they don’t agree with Trump’s manner of doing business.
Deutsche Welle reports:
The G20’s agriculture ministers issued a joint statement on Saturday, confirming their commitment against unilateral protectionism. They agreed to avoid “unnecessary obstacles” to trade as global tensions escalate off the back of tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.
The group also praised the World Trade Organization, which President Trump has antagonized by blocking the appointment of arbitration judges.
“Recognizing the important role of the WTO, we agree to continue the reform process of agricultural trade rules,” they said.
Germany: ‘Huge breakthrough’
Trade disagreements between the European Union and the US have thawed somewhat afterlast week’s meeting between President Trump and EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. However, as Germany’s Agriculture Minister Julia Klöckner (above left) pointed out, there is no guarantee Germany can import the number of US soybeans Washington wants it to.
However, Klöckner was largely optimistic, saying: “With this G20 meeting, we have succeeded in clear breakthroughs for agriculture, the climate, and therefore for the consumer.”
“We achieved more than we thought we would. That’s a huge breakthrough.”
The ministers talked about, among other things, combining productivity with sustainability and crop diversity.
On the sidelines of the meeting, US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said that the amount of a newly-announced bailout to US farmers would amount to between $7 billion and $8 billion (€6-6.8 billion). Farmers have been some of the hardest hit by Trump’s tariffs.
The G20 group, comprising Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, Britain, the United States and the EU, control about 69 per cent of all arable land and 80 per cent of the global trade in agricultural products. They were meeting in Buenos Aires.
Trump might have struck a cease fire with EU Commissioner Jean-Claude Juncker, but he hasn’t won the trade war. In response to Trump’s metals tariffs and threats of even more salvos of trade tariffs, and threats of secondary sanctions over multiple issues, Europe has been buzzing with lots of talk about Trump’s way with trade and foreign policy, but regardless of how much they don’t like it, and regardless of whatever they threaten to throw back at him, they’re not really in a position to oppose Trump in a meaningful way. We saw this with the Iran deal, where Trump withdrew America and reimposed sanctions on Iran and threatened secondary sanctions on anyone who does business with Iran. The EU and European signatories to the JCPOA committed to preserving the non proliferation agreement, but so far, all their talk about saving it and providing Iran suitable incentives to remain committed to it as well haven’t turned up anything concrete, and Iran is wondering where the goods are. Europe talks a lot of tough talk about disliking Trump’s way of doing business, but when the rubber meets the road, they’re not in a position to do much about it.
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