US under Trump Series: President Trump calls global leaders ahead of G20 debut

The G20 meeting in Hamburg, Germany is set to begin this week on Friday. The two-day meeting is of particular significance as the U.S. President Donald Trump will not only make his debut at his first meeting, he is also set to meet many of the world leaders for the first time at the G20. So far, President Trump has met face to face with the majority of the G20 leaders, he is yet to meet with the Russian President Vladimir Putin, Brazilian President Michel Temer, and Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Though he personally held a meeting during the campaign with the Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto for the first time since his inauguration as the duo canceled meeting in the past over the disputed border wall, popularly known as the ‘Trump Wall’. President Trump has promised to construct a border wall in its southern border with Mexico and make Mexico pay for it.

Before meeting with his counterparts, President Trump has called on many of the global leaders with regard to disputed issues. He called on Gulf leaders urging them to resolve the current ongoing dispute with Qatar in a diplomatic manner. He also called on Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss issues on North Korea. Last week, U.S. announced actions against a Chinese Bank, which is alleged to be involved in dealings with North Korea and announced arms sales worth $1.4 billion, a move that has been criticized by China.