BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — The strongmen are kicking ass on the world stage, and they know it.

Only moments after European Council President Donald Tusk used a news conference to urge G20 leaders to address Russia’s aggression in Ukraine and Saudi Arabia’s evident disregard for human rights, video footage of the leaders’ arrivals showed Russian President Vladimir Putin slapping hands in jovial fashion with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as they took their seats for the summit’s opening session.

It was a striking display of locker-room camaraderie between the two vilified tough guys — Putin, the former KGB agent who has been Russia’s supreme leader for just shy of two decades, and the young monarch who, according to Western and Turkish intelligence, ordered the killing and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Russian President Putin and Saudi Crown Prince bin Salman embrace and laugh at the G20 in Argentina. pic.twitter.com/DtyNK6RwhI

— NBC News (@NBCNews) November 30, 2018

If Putin was feeling any concern about Tusk’s vow that Western economic sanctions against Russia would be extended yet again in January, he did not give the smallest hint of it. And if the crown prince was worried in the slightest about the international condemnation that he has faced in recent weeks, there was also no indication as he adjusted his gold-trimmed thawb and took his seat at the conference table.

Indeed, the only tough guy in Argentina who seems to be having the slightest trouble these days is U.S. President Donald Trump, who flew to Buenos Aires amid the latest blockbuster developments in special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian collusion with the Trump election campaign.

Still, Trump, while conceding nothing, signalled that the latest Mueller development remains very much on his mind.

The president glibly brushed aside the news with a dismissive tweet that declared, once again, his usual reply to Mueller’s investigation: “Witch hunt!”

In a twist, Trump, who has long admired powerful authoritarian leaders, finds himself shunning the very men that he has praised for exuding strength.

White House officials have been at pains to fill the president’s schedule to limit the possibility of a lengthy interaction with Putin or MBS. And aides were frustrated by reports — notably in state media in Saudi Arabia and Russia — that Trump was planning to hold an informal chat with Putin and that he met with MBS.

Trump on Thursday canceled his planned meeting with Putin, calling it a response to the military operations against Ukraine. In response, Putin’s spokesman noted that the Russian leader would have a couple of hours of extra time for “useful meetings” at the G20.

U.S. aides dismissed the Russian report of a Putin-Trump huddle being back on, arguing it was an effort by the Russians to save face after the cancelation. And they acknowledged that Trump “exchanged pleasantries” with MBS as he did with many other world leaders.

“We had no discussion. We had no discussion. We might. But we had none,” Trump said when asked about the report that he met with MBS.

Asked by a reporter whether he’s going to be exchanging pleasantries with Putin during the summit, Trump said, “I don’t know. Not particularly. I don’t know.”

Toothless West

For Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, the evident self-assuredness of the Russian and Saudi leaders highlighted just how powerless the West has been in responding to what it views as grave transgressions of international norms.

“This is a difficult moment for international cooperation,” Tusk said at a joint news conference with Juncker. “I would like to appeal to the leaders to use this summit, including their bilateral and informal exchanges, to seriously discuss real issues such as trade wars, the tragic situation in Syria and Yemen and the Russian aggression in Ukraine. I see no reason why the G20 leaders shouldn’t have a meaningful discussion about solving these problems. Especially because all the instruments lie in their hands. The only condition is good will.”

Tusk, in an unsubtle jab at the Saudi prince, continued, “We also cannot underestimate other issues which remain difficult for some leaders, such as human rights, freedom of press and basic safety of journalists. It is our obligation, as the EU, to take this opportunity and press our partners to respect these basic principles.”

The EU countries at the #G20Summit coordinated position on trade, climate. On #Khashoggi we agreed urgent need to establish what happened on 2 October. Given outstanding nature of the case, the international dimension could enhance the credibility of the Saudi investigation. pic.twitter.com/w0YdrgSPuY

— Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) November 30, 2018

But the policy response so far has been weak. In a follow-up tweet, Tusk said European leaders were united in demanding further investigation of what happened to Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.

Even as Tusk reiterated his belief that sanctions already in place against Russia would be extended, there was no announcement of any new punitive measures in response to the recent naval attack on Ukrainian ships in the Sea of Azov.

Apart from stern criticism, there has been no policy action by the EU. One senior official said that such responses were in the hands of national governments, as happened in Germany, which has banned arms sales to Saudi Arabia.

French President Emmanuel Macron interacted briefly with the Saudi prince, and made an effort to rebuke  him.

A video of their encounter picked up the prince telling Macron “don’t worry” and the French president replying, “I do worry. I am worried.”

Later in the conversation Macron added, “You never listen to me.” And the prince replied, “I will listen, of course.”

Asked about the conversation, a French official told reporters that Macron had conveyed “a very firm” message.

Beyond the prince and the czar, the G20 summit as a whole was largely shaping up to be a sideline event to the bilateral trade negotiations between Trump and another strongman: Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The two are scheduled to meet over dinner on Saturday night in an effort to find a truce in their trade dispute. An all-out trade war between the U.S. and China would potentially set off a devastating domino effect, putting all of the economic powers at the summit under severe pressure.

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BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — President Donald Trump spoke briefly with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Friday on the sidelines of the G-20 summit, a move that could further inflame tensions both in the United States and abroad.

The exchange between the two leaders was not scheduled, and comes after U.S. and Turkish intelligence have both reportedly concluded that the crown prince ordered the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

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A White House official downplayed the interaction, saying, “They exchanged pleasantries at the leaders session as he did with nearly every leader in attendance.”

And Trump insisted there was no substantive meeting, telling reporters, “We had no discussion. We had no discussion. We might. But we had none.”

Trump has said that he is unsure whether the crown prince was involved in ordering Khashoggi’s murder, and that he stands by the United States’ partnership with the Saudis. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, however, have called on the president to heavily sanction Saudi Arabia.

Khashoggi, who was living in exile in the United States, was last seen entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October. Saudi officials have shifted their story multiple times about Khashoggi’s murder, eventually arresting 18 people and acknowledging that he was killed was visiting the consulate.

Earlier in the week, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said at a press briefing that a formal meeting was not planned due to the president’s tight schedule, but she would not rule out that the two could interact.

There’s also been heightened anticipation about whether Trump will interact with Russian President Vladimir Putin, especially after the White House yanked a formal meeting with him, citing Russia’s capture of several Ukrainian ships earlier this week.

Asked by a reporter on Friday whether he’s going to be exchanging pleasantries with Putin during the summit, Trump said, “I don’t know. Not particularly. I don’t know.”

Kiev, Ukraine – Foreign ministers from the world’s seven biggest economies, known as the Group of Seven or G7, have condemned Russia’s actions in Kerch Strait as they reaffirmed their “unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

A statement by G7 members – the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the High Representative of the European Union – on Friday said there was “no justification” for Russia’s use of military force against Ukrainian ships and naval personnel.

“We urge restraint, due respect for international law, and the prevention of any further escalation. We call on Russia to release the detained crew and vessels and refrain from impeding lawful passage through the Kerch Strait,” the statement read.

“We, the G7, once again reiterate that ‎we do not, and will never, recognise Russia’s illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula, and we reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.‎”

Olexiy Makeyev, political director at Ukraine’s foreign ministry, told Al Jazeera that Ukraine was defending itself “from the Russian aggression”.

“We count on support of our American partners and we enjoy a full support also by the European Union,” he said.

Ukraine seeks global support

The G7 statement came a day after US President Donald Trump cancelled his meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, saying the much-anticipated talks at the G20 could not take place while Ukrainian sailors were still in captivity.

Russia on Sunday blocked three Ukrainian military vessels from passing through the Kerch Strait on their way from the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov – the shared internal waters of both countries.

The confrontation escalated after Russia seized the three vessels and captured 24 Ukrainian crew members, who were later put under a 60-day pre-trial detention and sent to Moscow. Ukraine said the detainees were Russia’s “prisoners of war”.

Russia insists the Ukrainian sailors crossed into Russian waters illegally, with Putin saying the border guards “fulfilled their military duty” in seizing the ships.

As the threat of a “total war” grew, Kiev introduced martial law in 10 of its 27 regions for 30 days “to avoid an all-out Russian invasion”.

On Friday, Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko told Britain’s Sky News broadcaster that Trump’s decision to cancel the scheduled talks with Putin was an evidence of the Russian leader’s “isolation”.

“After a chemical attack in Britain, after a terror attack on MH17, after the Russian aggression in the east of my country, after Syria, after all these catastrophic actions, Putin is in isolation,” he said.

Ban on Russian men entry

Also on Friday, Ukraine barred Russian men between the age of 16 and 60 from entering the country.

Andriy Demchenko, Ukraine’s border service spokesperson, said it was not a blanket ban.

“Russian citizens will go through an additional interview at the border and their previous visits to Ukraine will be scrutinised,” he told Al Jazeera, adding that the decision to block them will be taken on a case by case basis, with necessary exceptions.

“Exceptions might be applied to individuals with diplomatic status, transport personnel, people with temporary or permanent residency in Ukraine, and those coming for humanitarian purposes,” he said.

Poroshenko said the move would “prevent the Russian Federation from forming detachments of private armies” in Ukraine “similar to the operations they tried to carry out in 2014”.

Ukraine believes that Russian citizens and soldiers are fighting alongside Moscow-backed rebels, who in 2014 seized parts of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions, declaring them independent from Kiev.

Ukraine has also launched military drills in the Sea of Azov, with its soldiers role-playing the repelling of an attempted Russian landing on the coast.

Maria Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, said on Friday that Moscow would not implement a similar travel ban on Ukrainians as it would be “irrational”.

She accused Poroshenko of using martial law as a way of “raising his falling electoral ratings” in an attempt to earn points during the “latest Russophobic wave”.

The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 10,000 people, including civilians.

Follow Tamila Varshalomidze on Twitter @tamila87v.

Foreign Policy

U.S. and Russian officials also disagree on the real reason why Trump cancelled a planned sit down with the Russian leader.

BUENOS AIRES — The White House denied Friday that President Donald Trump has a pull-aside meeting planned with Russian President Vladimir Putin after the Kremlin said an impromptu meeting between the two leaders would occur.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian news agency RIA Novosti that the two leaders may chat “on their feet” during the G-20 summit, according to a Bloomberg report. Asked for comment, a White House official said, “There is no scheduled pull-aside.”

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But that wouldn’t preclude the two men from speaking if, as is likely, they cross paths at the annual summit of the world’s leading economic powers. White House officials have not ruled out the possibility that Trump could speak informally with foreign leaders he is not officially scheduled to meet.

Trump did not interact with Putin during a group photo with world leaders at the summit, instead chatting mostly with French President Emmanuel Macron. And at the start of a formal meeting between the G-20 leaders, he was seen talking with British Prime Minister Theresa May.

Trump canceled his planned meeting with Putin with a Thursday tweet from Air Force One, shortly after he departed for Argentina for the summit. He cited Russia’s capture of several Ukrainian ships earlier this week in waters off the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014, and which Trump officials have denounced as an act of Russian aggression. The decision to scuttle the meeting surprised and irked Russia.

In a statement, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders denied that the Putin meeting was scratched because of the news that Trump’s former lawyer pleaded guilty to lying about the extent to which he and Trump discussed a Moscow real-estate project during the 2016 presidential campaign.

“The Russian Witch Hunt Hoax, which is hopefully now nearing an end, is doing very well. Unfortunately, it probably does undermine our relationship with Russia,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement. “However, the reason for our canceled meeting is Ukraine. Hopefully, that will be resolved soon so that productive conversations can begin.”

But Russian government officials and media outlets have cast public doubt on that assertion.

“Was Ukraine’s provocation in the Kerch Strait the true reason for the cancellation?” Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on Friday, according to Russia’s TASS news service. “We have heard the official explanation and taken note of it.””But is it true? I think the true reason is rooted in the domestic political situation in the United States, which is crucial for decision-making,” Zakharova added.

A headline in the Kremlin-funded news outlet RT struck a similar note:“Bad publicity? Cohen? Russiagate? Many reasons Trump canceled Putin meeting, but Ukraine isn’t one,” it declared.