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Trump to Hold at Least 8 Bilateral Side Meetings at G-20

Steve Herman

   WHITE HOUSE - Just a month after a state visit to Japan, U.S. President
   Donald Trump this week heads to the East Asian country again.
   In Osaka, Trump will attend the Group of 20 leaders' summit, during
   which he is scheduled to meet one-on-one on the sidelines with such
   fellow world leaders as Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian
   President Vladimir Putin.
   "The president is quite comfortable his position going into the
   meeting" with Xi following the breakdown of U.S.-China trade talks and
   increased tariffs on Beijing by Washington, a senior administration
   official told reporters on Monday.
   U.S. officials say there is no fixed agenda for Trump's meeting with
   Putin although they acknowledge issues involving Iran, Ukraine, the
   Middle East and Venezuela are almost certain to be discussed.
   US-Iran
   Casting a pall over the G-20 discussions will be nervousness about the
   deteriorating situation between Washington and Tehran. Leaders in both
   capitals have been reiterating they want to avoid war but have also
   repeatedly stated they will not hesitate to defend their interests if
   provoked.

   Trump is to reiterate to his fellow leaders at the G-20 that the United
   States intends to continue to increase economic pressure on Iran, which
   finds itself under escalating U.S. sanctions, and eliminate all of the
   country's petroleum exports.

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