Fight against hunger and poverty: What will be important in Rio? G20 countries are struggling for solutions

Brazil wants to push ahead with the fight against hunger and climate change as well as taxing the super-rich at the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro. But geopolitical conflicts will probably dominate the discussions again. The most important questions and answers at the meeting of the heads of state and government of the 20 most important industrialized and emerging countries:

What topics will be discussed at the summit?

A central theme at the two-day meeting is the fight against global hunger. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wants to launch the “Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty”.

The aim is to advance initiatives to increase food production and combat hunger. Lula’s policies in Brazil also serve as a model. These include programs for poor families and microcredits for small farmers.

Germany, the USA and the EU have already pledged their support for the alliance. “First of all, we will develop the first poverty reduction strategy in the EU at national level, but we will also be involved at global level,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told the Brazilian TV channel Globonews before the summit began.

What else could be in the summit declaration?

A restructuring of the international system is also one of the declared goals of the Brazilian G20 presidency. Lula sees Brazil as the mouthpiece of the global south and wants to make the emerging countries more heard.

Lula also wants to reach an agreement between the countries on a framework for a wealth tax for the super-rich. The G20 finance ministers had already agreed in a joint statement in July to advocate for effective taxation of the super-rich.

However, the idea already divided the G20 countries back then. While France, Spain and South Africa expressed their support, the USA is against it. It is questionable whether a passage on wealth tax will make it into the final declaration.

At their summit meetings, the G20 usually make joint decisions by the heads of state and government, which are not legally binding but still have a strong political signal effect.

What is the current situation regarding climate protection?

The cause is very important to host Lula; he has been committed to climate protection since taking office. One of the three working sessions is dedicated to sustainable development and energy transition. The G20 could send a signal – in both directions, positive and negative – for further negotiations at the current parallel World Climate Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan, where negotiations have been extremely slow so far.

With US President Joe Biden, Lula has a comrade-in-arms at his side. The latter will only be in office for a few more weeks. His designated successor Donald Trump wants to increase oil production and turned away from the Paris climate agreement in his first term in office. Argentina will also be at the table in Rio and there are fears that the country could withdraw from the international Paris climate protection agreement.

So Trump won’t be at the G20 summit?

No. Joe Biden will be President of the USA until the inauguration in January. The Republican and the expectations of his term in office will certainly always play a role at the summit. Trump relies on isolationism and “America First” in foreign policy – cooperation and communication on equal terms are not part of his political style. The other G20 members will have to prepare for this.

The US’s attitude towards Ukraine after Trump’s return to the White House is awaited with great interest. He has announced that he will end the Russian war of aggression within a short period of time and has made it clear that US military aid to Kiev will soon dry up.

Russia is also one of the G20 countries. Will Vladimir Putin also come to the meeting?

No. The Russian President has canceled and is sending Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to represent him – as he did in the last two years after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The G20 group of leading economic powers from all continents is the only discussion format in which Russia and the NATO states still sit at the same table with high-ranking representatives.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is not planning to talk to Lavrov there, but according to those close to him, he will talk to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the war in Ukraine, who is considered Putin’s most important ally.

Putin himself canceled his participation in the summit in order not to “disrupt the normal work of the forum,” which has other topics. There is an international arrest warrant for him from the World Criminal Court in The Hague because he is accused of war crimes in Ukraine. Therefore, Putin would risk arrest in Brazil.

Ukraine is not part of the G20. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was also not invited to Rio as a guest by the Brazilian hosts.