G20 Trade Ministers Meet in Milwaukee to Address Food Weaponization

G20 trade ministers gathered in Milwaukee for a two-day summit hosted by the United States to address four priority issues: the weaponization of food, structural excess capacity, forced labor in supply chains, and the Most-Favoured-Nation principle.

Jamieson Greer, the United States Trade Representative, opened the session by warning that coercive trade actions involving agricultural products pose serious consequences for global economies. He urged members to seek concrete actions in Milwaukee rather than deferring discussions to the World Trade Organization in Geneva. In response, India's Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal cautioned the group to distinguish between the actual weaponization of food supply chains and legitimate national measures taken to ensure domestic food security.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Brazil's Minister of Development, Industry, Trade and Services, Márcio Elias Rosa, called for the urgent reform of the WTO, which he described as being in critical condition. Rosa argued that the organization must be reinvigorated to prevent the fragmentation of international trade and opposed the use of tariffs as instruments of coercion or discrimination. While Rosa noted a general consensus on the need for reform, including from the United States, the specific terms of such a process remain under deliberation.