Putin knocks Trump trade agenda ahead of meeting

Russian President Vladimir Putin blasted economic protectionism and sanctions in an implicit swipe at President Trump on Thursday, a day before the two leaders are set to meet for the first time.

In an op-ed published in the German financial newspaper Handelblatt ahead of the Group of 20 meeting in Hamburg, Putin showered praise on the G-20’s push for free trade and action on climate change, while warning that “protectionism is becoming the norm.”

“The old economic models have all but exhausted their possibilities,” Putin wrote. “Protectionism is becoming the norm, while unilateral, politically motivated restrictions on trade and investment, as well as technology transfer, are nothing but masked protectionism.

{mosads}”I am confident that only open trade based on common norms and standards can stimulate global economic growth and the gradual improvement of interstate relations,” he continued.

While Putin never mentioned Trump directly, the article was a masked swipe at the U.S. president, who has vowed to implement “America first” policies and assailed the current global trade environment as unfair to the U.S.

Putin and Trump are expected to meet for the first time on the sidelines of the summit of leading rich and developing nations Friday. The highly anticipated talks come as Trump faces investigations back home into possible collusion between his campaign and Moscow.

In his op-ed, Putin also applauded the G-20’s work on climate change and reaffirmed Russia’s commitment to the 195-nation Paris climate agreement. Trump announced last month that he will withdraw the U.S. from the landmark accord.

“We view the Paris Agreement of April 2016 as a reliable international legal framework for a lasting climate settlement and intend to do our best to facilitate its implementation,” Putin wrote.