Australia in the G20: a guide for Model G20 delegates

Australia is one of the 19 countries in the G20, which also includes the European Union and the African Union. It held the G20 presidency in 2014 and speaks up for open trade, global rules and climate action, and belongs to MIKTA, a group of democracies that says it aims to bridge divides. This guide reflects official sources as of mid-October 2026.

At a glance

• System: "a representative democracy, constitutional monarchy and a federation", says the Australian Parliament's education office (2026). King Charles III is the monarch, represented in Australia by the Governor-General, Sam Mostyn. The capital is Canberra.
• Leaders (2026): Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Foreign Minister Penny Wong.
• People and economy: about 27.9 million people (Australian Bureau of Statistics, March 2026) and GDP of about US$1.8 trillion (World Bank, 2025).
• G20 presidency: 2014, with the summit in Brisbane on 15 and 16 November.
• Climate: net zero by 2050 is set in law, and the 2035 target, set in 2025, is 62 to 70 per cent below 2005 levels.

Australia's G20 story

Australia's foreign ministry, DFAT, calls the country "a founding member of both the G20 and APEC".

Australia's big year was 2014. Leaders set "an ambitious goal to lift the G20's GDP by at least an additional two per cent by 2018", and the Brisbane Communique said IMF and OECD analysis found their commitments, "if fully implemented, will deliver 2.1 per cent". That was a goal, not a result. The Communique also:

• agreed to set up a Global Infrastructure Hub "with a four-year mandate";
• aimed to cut the gap between men's and women's labour force participation "by 25 per cent by 2025";
• reaffirmed commitments "to resist protectionism";
• said global economic institutions "need to be effective and representative".

Ministers met in Sydney, Melbourne and Cairns, and Brisbane handed over to Turkey (now Türkiye). Hosts are named up to the Republic of Korea in 2028, and Australia is not among them. It still does detailed work: it co-chaired the Infrastructure Working Group with Brazil in 2023, and the 2026 Asheville finance ministers' chair's statement thanks Australia and Korea for co-chairing the study group on global imbalances.

What Australia wants from the G20

These are the Australian government's positions in its own words. Other members, and critics inside Australia, disagree with some of them.

• Open trade. DFAT says Australia "actively promotes an open global economy and a rules-based multilateral trading system." At Johannesburg in November 2025, Mr Albanese said "we're a trading nation. One in four of our jobs is dependent upon trade." In March 2025 he called the US steel and aluminium tariffs "entirely unjustified" but said Australia "will not be imposing reciprocal tariffs". DFAT reports a 12.5 per cent US tariff on imports from Australia from 24 July 2026, with separate rates for steel and other goods.
• Climate and energy. The government calls its 2035 target "ambitious but achievable", but says gas still has a role. At Johannesburg, Mr Albanese said "It's a part of the transition which is occurring." Australia will be "President of Negotiations" at the COP31 climate talks, which Türkiye hosts in Antalya from 9 to 20 November 2026.
• Development. The 2026-27 budget provides A$5.209 billion in aid, and DFAT says "More than 75 cents in every development dollar benefits the Indo-Pacific".
• Technology. The National AI Plan (December 2025) aims to "Capture the opportunity", "Spread the benefits" and "Keep Australians safe".
• Global institutions. Australia wants more Security Council seats for "Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Asia-Pacific", and seeks a non-permanent seat for 2029-2030. We found no recent Australian statement on IMF reform or debt relief, so build those positions by reasoning, not invented quotes.

Alliances and groupings

• MIKTA: Australia, Mexico, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea and Türkiye, all G20 members. DFAT says it "aims to bridge divides in the multilateral system and build consensus".
• The Quad: Australia, India, Japan and the United States, working for "a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific".
• Asia-Pacific trade: a founding member of APEC (1989), and a party to the CPTPP, which it chaired in 2025, and to RCEP, which includes China and Japan but not India.
• Also: the Pacific Islands Forum, the Commonwealth and the OECD, led by a former Australian Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann.
• Not in the G7, though France's G7 presidency included Australian ministers in a critical minerals meeting in May 2026.

Australia and India

The two have been Comprehensive Strategic Partners since 4 June 2020 and sit together in the Quad. Their leaders hold annual summits: the second was on the sidelines of the Rio G20 summit on 19 November 2024, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Australia for the third in July 2026. On the sidelines of the Johannesburg summit in November 2025, Australia, India and Canada agreed to enter into a technology and innovation partnership.

• Trade: India was Australia's fifth largest trading partner in 2025. India's foreign ministry says two-way trade fell to AUD 50.21 billion in 2025 from AUD 53.06 billion in 2024. The ECTA trade agreement has been in force since 29 December 2022, and a bigger deal, CECA, is still being negotiated.
• Students: India is the second largest source of foreign students in Australia: 142,515 in 2025 (India's foreign ministry) or 137,703 in August 2025 (DFAT).
• UN and climate: Australia supports India's bid for a permanent Security Council seat. Their July 2026 joint statement says the Paris Agreement will be implemented to reflect "equity and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances".
• Energy: a Renewable Energy Partnership, launched on the sidelines of the Rio G20 summit in 2024, includes a Rooftop Solar Academy that aims "to train 2,000 women and youth as solar technicians".

Recent developments

• November 2025: at Johannesburg, with the United States absent, Mr Albanese speaks up for "free and fair trade". The next day, the Australian government announces that it will lead the COP31 negotiations, with Türkiye as host.
• April 2026: before the G20 finance meeting in Washington, Treasurer Chalmers pledges to continue Australia's calls for "an enduring ceasefire" in the Middle East and "the proper reopening of the Strait of Hormuz".
• July 2026: the third annual summit with India (joint statement of 9 July), then the 12.5 per cent US tariff (24 July).
• Coming up: COP31 in Antalya (9 to 20 November 2026) and the Miami leaders' summit (14 to 15 December 2026).

Representing Australia at a Model G20

• Know the line. "Multilateralism is something that's very much in Australia's national interest," Mr Albanese said in 2025. Never call Australia a republic, a G7 member or the host of COP31.
• Likely allies. MIKTA partners for bridge-building, India and Japan on the Indo-Pacific, and Korea, its imbalances co-chair.
• Handle the US carefully. It is a Quad partner and the 2026 host, but Mr Albanese called its 2025 steel and aluminium tariffs "entirely unjustified". State that objection plainly without threatening retaliation, as Australia chose not to impose reciprocal tariffs.
• Likely red lines. Resist wording that excuses protectionism, weakens the WTO or drops climate action. Be wary of text cutting coal or gas exports: asked at Johannesburg whether Australia would taper them, Mr Albanese answered "No."
• Be a bridge. As COP31's President of Negotiations, Australia has reason to build agreement. Pair clean energy with energy security, a phrase the US presidency also uses.
• Speak for the Pacific and raise disaster preparedness, which Mr Albanese called for at Johannesburg.
• Documents to quote. The Brisbane Communique (2014), DFAT's G20 page, Mr Albanese's Johannesburg press conference (2025) and the India joint statement (9 July 2026).

What to do next

Start with how to write a Model G20 position paper and how a G20 leaders' declaration is agreed. Then read the G20 Sherpa Track and Finance Track explained and the 2026 G20 presidency explained.

Model G20 is One Young India's simulation of the G20 summit for students, held as a three-day residential summit at FLAME University.