World leaders braced for tough talks with Trump on climate, trade

Leaders from the world's top economies will try to bridge deep differences with US President Donald Trump on climate change and trade on Friday as a Group of 20 summit gets underway in Germany amid the threat of violent protests.

The meeting is being held at the port city of Hamburg, Germany, and comes at a time of tectonic shifts in the global geo-political landscape, with Trump's "America First" policies pushing Europe and China closer together.

Trump will meet Russia's Vladimir Putin for the first time on Friday afternoon, where they are likely to clash over North Korea’s successful ballistic missile test and Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s use of chemical weapons.

Before the meeting, Trump used a speech in Warsaw on Thursday to urge Russia to “cease its destabilising activities in Ukraine and elsewhere, and its support for hostile regimes including Syria and Iran.”

The US president called on Russia to “join the community of responsible nations in our fight against common enemies and in defence of civilization itself.”

The summit also brings together Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a time when Washington is ratcheting up pressure on Beijing to rein in North Korea after it test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile and threatening the Chinese with punitive trade measures.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is hosting the meeting, faces the task of steering leaders towards a consensus on trade, climate and migration.

Facing her own election in two months, Merkel met with Trump for one hour at a hotel in Hamburg on Thursday evening to try to overcome differences that envoys have been unable to settle in weeks of intense talks, including a last minute trip to Washington by the chancellor's top economic adviser.