Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will step up efforts to isolate Iran economically as he hosts G20 counterparts next week, a US official said Thursday, in a gathering clouded by war and trade tensions.<\/p>\n
Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 major economies are due to convene in mountainous Asheville, North Carolina, next Monday and Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Their talks are the first of several key ministerial meetings this year, setting the stage for a G20 leaders’ summit President Donald Trump will host in December in Florida.<\/p>\n
In Asheville, US officials will stress to G20 members the importance of complying with its sanctions on Iran, as it ramps up pressure on Tehran amid war in the Middle East, a Treasury official told reporters.<\/p>\n
The official signaled Bessent will make direct appeals to counterparts in bilateral meetings. But they stopped short of sharing who he had scheduled talks with and whether they include China.<\/p>\n
The G20 comprises 19 nations plus the European Union and the African Union. It was established in the wake of the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis to boost global economic and financial stability.<\/p>\n
But South Africa has been excluded from the G20 under the US presidency this year, while Washington invited Poland to a seat at the table.<\/p>\n
Next week, US officials will also push to address concerns like excess industrial capacity, promoting stronger economic growth and building reliable supply chains for critical resources like energy.<\/p>\n
Although G20 talks broadened to cover issues like climate change and global health over time, analysts expect Washington to advocate a “back-to-basics” approach this year.<\/p>\n
This means a renewed focus on debt, trade, financial stability and banking regulation, Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at the Atlantic Council think tank, told AFP.<\/p>\n
The upcoming gathering, however, comes as US global leadership faces a test.<\/p>\n
Worries about US debt levels are growing, while Trump’s sweeping tariffs targeting competitors — and longtime allies like Canada — have strained ties.<\/p>\n
Countries are also grappling with economic fallout after US-Israel strikes on Iran from February plunged the Middle East into war, causing energy costs to surge.<\/p>\n
Bessent has laid out plans to isolate Iran economically, widening secondary sanctions threats and warning of dire consequences for countries that fail to join the campaign.<\/p>\n
But doing so will likely require taking on China, the main buyer of Iranian oil — a difficult task ahead of Trump’s expected September summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.<\/p>\n
With a US-Canada trade war and Bessent warning of sanctions hitting other members around the table, “it just creates the broader feeling of, could this group fracture?” Lipsky said.<\/p>\n
“I think that’s really the challenge for this meeting,” he said.<\/p>\n
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