President Trump vowed his Argentina trip will be very productive, despite earlier canceling one meeting and downgrading two others.
“Arrived in Argentina with a very busy two days planned. Important meetings scheduled throughout,” Trump said in a Thursday night tweet.
[Also read: ‘He will show he’s tougher.’ Putin likely to strike back at Trump: Kremlinologists]
Arrived in Argentina with a very busy two days planned. Important meetings scheduled throughout. Our great Country is extremely well represented. Will be very productive!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2018
Trump, who is in Buenos Aires for the weekend’s G-20 summit, canceled a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin via tweet Thursday morning over the country’s seizure of Ukrainian ships and sailors on Sunday.
Later, the White House confirmed it had downgraded scheduled bilateral meetings with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and South Korean President Moon Jae-in from formal sitdowns to informal “pull-asides” in response to reports of the meetings being canceled.
Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in early October.
The president’s schedule does not include a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom the Central Intelligence Agency has said was behind the killing. Trump, along with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, have expressed doubt over a connection between the crown prince and Khashoggi’s murder.
Trump does have bilateral meetings with the leaders of four countries and a working dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping on his schedule.
