Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Russia's President Vladimir Putin during the opening of the G20 leaders summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Russian President Vladimir Putin walked up to Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a summit of G20 world leaders, high-fived him and then shook his hand heartily. Moments earlier the prince had been pictured on the far edge of the traditional "family portrait" photograph, ignored by other leaders.
The two moments captured the dilemma facing world leaders at the Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires this weekend: How to deal with the crown prince, who is dogged by controversy over the murder of a Saudi journalist but is also de facto leader of a rich, oil-producing kingdom that is a major global investor.
To be sure Putin's exuberant greeting of the prince was seen as over the top and promptly went viral. But, while leaders appeared to ignore Prince Mohammed on stage during the "family photo," many went on to have closed-door bilateral meetings with him during the two-day summit.
The crown prince, facing a global outcry over the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul six weeks ago, had conversations with at least 12 world leaders.
G20 leaders were due to discuss climate change at the morning session of their summit on Saturday and negotiations on a draft communique were expected to last until the final minute, a spokesperson for the Argentine G20 sherpa said.Leaders were close to agreement on wording over reform of the World Trade Organization and had "advanced a lot" on trade, the spokesperson said: "We are going to negotiate till the last minute". 
G20 to negotiate communique 'until last minute', yet to discuss climate change
European officials said that G20 nations had agreed to commit to reforming the World Trade Organization in a preliminary draft of the communique due to be released at the end of a two-day meeting of the bloc on Saturday.The officials also said that language regarding migration and refugees in the draft communique would be kept to a minimum while the wording on climate change would not show any backtracking. The communique still needs final endorsment from member nations. Saudi Crown Prince sidelined in G20 family photoPutin warmly greets Saudi crown prince at G20 summit
Europeans say G20 members agree to reform WTO in draft communique
Three of them, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, British Prime Minister Theresa May and French President Emmanuel Macron, said publicly they had pressed Prince Mohammed for a full investigation into the murder.
Saudi Arabia has said the prince had no prior knowledge of the murder of the prominent Saudi journalist. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said the killing was ordered by the highest level of Saudi leadership but probably not from King Salman, putting the spotlight instead on the 33-year-old crown prince.
Trudeau said he had a frank conversation with the prince at a leaders' dinner on Friday, telling him there was "a need for better answers on the killing of Khashoggi." May said she called for a full, credible and transparent investigation, while Macron insisted the crown prince allow international investigators to take part in any inquiry.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has defended U.S. ties with Saudi Arabia, "exchanged pleasantries" with the crown prince, the White House said. Trump has said it may never be known if Prince Mohammed ordered the killing or not. Sources say the CIA believes the crown prince ordered the killing.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was sidelined during the official "family photo" of world leaders and other dignitaries at the Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires on Friday, standing at the far edge of the group portrait and ignored.Prince Mohammed's presence at the international summit has been contentious following the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October.The crown prince, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, quickly exited the stage without shaking hands or talking with other leaders.At center stage was Argentine President Mauricio Macri, hosting this year's summit of G20 industrialized nations.Macri has said accusations that Prince Mohammed was involved in Khashoggi's death could be discussed by world leaders during the two-day summit. Saudi Arabia has said the prince had no prior knowledge of the murder.Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prince Mohammed later exchanged a high-five and a handshake and laughed heartily as they took seats next to each other in the main meeting room. 
Saudi Crown Prince sidelined in G20 family photo
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman exchanged a high-five and laughed heartily together on Friday as they took seats next to each other at a plenary session of the Group of 20 summit.Putin's friendly behaviour towards the crown prince contrasted sharply with that of other leaders at the Buenos Aires summit, amid suspicions of his possible involvement in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October.Saudi Arabia has said the prince had no prior knowledge of the murder, which has sorely tested the kingdom's relations with the United States, other Western nations and Turkey.Earlier, Prince Mohammed was sidelined during the official "family photo" of world leaders at Friday's gathering and was largely ignored. He then quickly exited the stage without shaking hands or talking with the other leaders.Video: Putin, bin Salman high five at G20Russia has refrained from criticising Saudi Arabia or the crown prince over the killing. Putin said in October he lacked information about the matter and said Russia would not tear up its relations with Saudi Arabia because of it.However, Moscow has also fostered strong ties with Saudi Arabia's regional arch foe Iran. Russia and Iran back President Bashar al-Assad in Syria's civil war, while Saudi Arabia along with Western countries have backed some rebel groups.Putin and Prince Mohammed are due to hold bilateral talks on Saturday, according to Kremlin documents seen by Reuters.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries as well as Russia and other leading oil producers will meet in Vienna on Dec 6-7 to discuss further steps on the oil market as prices have been declining due to oversupply.Riyadh has suggested OPEC and its allies reduce output by 1 million barrels per day from January 2019 to stem the price falls.
Putin warmly greets Saudi crown prince at G20 summit
No Discussion
The crown prince also discussed investments and economic partnerships with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Readouts of those meetings did not say whether Xi and Modi had confronted the prince over the Khashoggi case.
"China firmly supports Saudi Arabia in its drive for economic diversification and social reform, and will continue to stick together with Saudi Arabia on issues involving their core interests," Xi said, according to China's official Xinhua news agency.
Modi and Prince Mohammed discussed scaling up investments in India’s tech, farm and energy sectors, according to an Indian official and the Saudi news agency (SPA).
Turkish president on Friday met Dutch prime minister and Chinese president on the sidelines of G20 Leaders’ Summit in Argentine capital Buenos Aires on Friday.The meeting between Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Dutch PM Mark Rutte was closed to the media and lasted almost one hour.In addition to the meeting with Rutte, Erdogan held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping for 30 minutes.During the meetings, Erdogan was accompanied by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Presidential Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, Presidency’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan.The two-day G20 summit in Argentina began on Friday.Argentinian President Mauricio Macri, who is also the term president for the summit, welcomed the guests including 19 world leaders and EU representatives.Some 15,000 people are expected to attend the meeting. In addition, at least 3,000 journalists are following the meeting.The summit's first session will be about human values, global economy, future of business life and women empowerment.The second session will cover sustainable development and climate, while the third will discuss infrastructure, energy and future of sustainable food.A joint declaration is expected to be published at the end of the summit on Saturday.
Turkish president meets Dutch, Chinese leaders at G20
Before the start of the gathering, Argentinian President Mauricio Macri had said it was possible that the accusations against the crown prince could be discussed when the leaders convened.
In the end, they were not.
Days before the start of the summit, Human Rights Watch called on Argentina to use a war crimes clause in its constitution to investigate any involvement by the crown prince in possible crimes against humanity in Yemen, where a Saudi-led military campaign is under way, and Khashoggi’s murder.
The federal prosecutor's office assigned to review the case had not announced whether a formal investigation would be opened by the close of the summit on Saturday.
Turkey’s president met with other heads of state Friday on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina.Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s meeting with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte lasted nearly an hour.Erdoğan also held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping for 30 minutes and Chile’s President Sebastian Pinera for 35 minutes.The meetings were closed to the press.Erdoğan also attended a cultural event together with other world leaders at the Colón Theatre and they dined in the theatre's Golden Room afterwards.During the gatherings, Erdoğan was accompanied by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin as well as Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, the Turkish Presidency’s Communications Director, Fahrettin Altun, and Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan.Video: Erdoğan meets Chilean president at G20Wall St set to open lower ahead of Trump-Xi trade meetingArgentine President Mauricio Macri, who is also the term president for the summit, welcomed guests, including 19 world leaders and EU representatives.Around 15,000 people are expected to attend the two-day summit, while at least 3,000 journalists are following the event.The summit's first session will be about human values, the global economy, the future of work and women’s empowerment.The second session will cover sustainable development and climate change, while the third will discuss infrastructure for development, energy and a sustainable food future.A joint declaration is expected to be published at the end of the summit on Saturday.US-China dispute casts shadow as world leaders gather in ArgentinaKremlin says Putin and Trump will have impromptu meeting at G20Macron, Abe to discuss Renault-Nissan at G20 as feud brews
Turkey's president meets with other leaders at G20
Thousands of people demonstrated in Argentina’s capital as world leaders met for the G20 Leaders’ Summit.Demonstrators gathered near the National Congress building in Buenos Aires and protested against the G20's failure to address a broad range of issues, from climate change to poverty.They also protested against the amount spent on the summit at a time when Argentina is in an economic crisis and against President Mauricio Macri’s policies to combat inflation.A total of 19 world leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are attending the gathering along with EU representatives.Around 15,000 people are also expected to attend the event, which is being followed by at least 3,000 journalists.A joint declaration is expected to be published at the end of the summit on Saturday.The next G20 summit will be held in Osaka, Japan.The Group of 20 is an international forum that brings together the world’s 20 leading industrialized and emerging economies.Turkey's president meets with other leaders at G20
Thousands protest G20 policies as world leaders meet