Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend next week’s G20 summit in Bali, the Russian embassy said on Thursday, ending months of uncertainty over the Kremlin leader’s intentions, AFP reported.

“I can confirm that (Foreign Minister) Sergey Lavrov will lead the Russian delegation to the G20. President Putin’s program is still being developed, he could participate virtually,” said Yulia Tomska, director of protocol at the Russian Embassy in Indonesia.

The announcement comes after months of uncertainty over the Russian president’s participation in the G20 summit of heads of state and government, which Indonesia is hosting on November 15 and 16.

Another source close to the organization of the Jakarta summit told AFP that the Russian president’s participation was “highly unlikely” and that he would be replaced by the foreign minister. Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in August that Vladimir Putin had accepted his invitation to the summit. .

It will be recalled that Lavrov left the meeting of G20 foreign ministers early in July in Bali after facing criticism from several colleagues over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Indonesia came under intense pressure from the West to exclude Russia from the summit in response to the war in Ukraine. But the Southeast Asian country, which favors diplomacy independent of major powers, objected, saying the summit host country should remain neutral.

Great world leaders will take part in the G20 summit

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, whose country is not a member of the G20, has also been invited by Indonesia and can speak via video link. Last week, the Ukrainian leader warned that he would not go to the summit if his Russian counterpart was present.

US President Joe Biden, who has repeatedly called the Russian president a “war criminal”, said he had no intention of speaking with him at the G20.

The G20 summit in Bali will be the largest meeting of the leaders of the world’s major economies since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. Indonesia has confirmed the presence of 17 leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Joe Biden.

The meeting comes against the backdrop of multiple crises, including the war in Ukraine, concerns about the global economy caused by persistent inflation and the impact of climate change.

Ministerial meetings before the November summit ended without a joint communique due to disagreements over the war in Ukraine.

————–

• Thursday’s events regarding the war in Ukraine are broadcast LIVE on HotNews.ro