G-20 To Hold Tough On Russia, Urge An End To Ukraine Conflict

(CTN NEWS) – G-20- A forceful statement firmly denouncing Russia’s invasion, which has wreaked havoc in Ukraine and rocked the international economy, is almost ready for ratification by the leaders of most of the world’s economic powers.

Even China, which until now has largely refrained from criticizing Russia, and India, which purchases weaponry from Russia, are speaking out in favour of the country.

Presidents of the United States, Joe Biden and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy, pushed world leaders on Tuesday to strongly denounce Russia’s nuclear threats and food embargoes.

The meeting, which has been extremely dramatic, including a COVID-19 concern when Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen tested positive and returned home, will continue to be discussed and maybe voted on Wednesday. Other leaders weren’t given great reviews.

Although it recognizes that members have different opinions, the Group of 20 leaders’ draught statement condemns Russia’s war on Ukraine similarly to the UN.

The statement’s cautious wording underscores the tense atmosphere at the conference, attended by officials from China and Russia, as well as the difficulty facing the United States and its allies in isolating the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Some countries desperately desire to stay out of conflicts between the major powers.

The proclamation would be a stern condemnation of the war, which has claimed thousands of lives, increased tensions in world security, and damaged the global economy, even if it were to be adopted in its current form.

Since China and India refrained from denouncing Russia’s aggressiveness in the March U.N. resolution, that would be a significant step.

The draught statement, which The Associated Press saw on Tuesday, “demands the Russian Federation’s complete and unconditional withdrawal from the territory of Ukraine” and “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation.”

While stating that the G-20 is not the appropriate platform for resolving security issues, the G-20 statement acknowledges various perspectives on the situation and sanctions against Russia.

Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser for the United States, condemned Russia’s most recent attacks in Ukraine.

In a statement, he added, “It is not lost on us that, as world leaders gather at the G-20 in Bali to discuss matters of significant importance to the lives and livelihoods of people around the world, Russia once again threatens those lives and damages Ukraine’s critical infrastructure.”

Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, who took Putin’s place as head of the delegation to Indonesia, criticized the efforts of the Biden administration to criticize Moscow.

According to Lavrov, “all problems stem from the Ukrainian side, which categorically refuses to hold talks and presents unrealistic and insufficient conditions for the situation at hand.”

The COVID-19 epidemic has been a significant problem for the world economy for the past two years.

Although no incidents were reported during the summit, the prime minister of Cambodia was among the leaders who met with him just a few days before at a different Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Cambodia.

Biden opted not to attend a Tuesday night event that Indonesian President Joko Widodo was hosting to address unidentified concerns.

According to a White House official, Biden sent Widodo a letter expressing his regrets and promising to join other G-20 leaders for a Wednesday tree-planting ceremony.

The official, who spoke under the condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak publicly, acknowledged that the president had a “full day,” but insisted that Biden’s absence had nothing to do with COVID-19.

Despite the financial concerns that have shaken the resolve of many countries, Zelenskyy delivered a video address to the G-20’s main business to convince the group to further isolate Russia diplomatically and economically.

The economies of the nations that have penalized Russia for starting the war are already suffering from inflation and slowing growth.

As much of Europe gears up to weather the winter without importing Russian natural gas, business activity has been hampered by rising energy and food prices.

“It will be challenging for the globe to advance if the war does not cease,” warned Indonesia’s Widodo menacingly.

Zelenskyy reiterated 10 requirements for ending the February-starting conflict: the complete withdrawal of Russian troops and the complete restoration of Ukrainian sovereignty over its territory.

He spoke a few days after his country’s most recent counteroffensive, which forced Moscow to withdraw some forces from occupied territory, and saw Ukraine retake the strategic city of Kherson from Russian forces.

He declared that “Ukraine should not be allowed to reach compromises with its conscience, sovereignty, territory, and independence.”

“The world has seen Ukraine play a leading role in efforts to maintain peace. And if Russia claims that it wants to end this conflict, let it back up its claims with deeds.”

At the conference, Biden met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was instrumental in brokering a deal to allow exports of Ukrainian grain to help with the world’s food shortages this summer.

Additionally, Biden had a brief meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose cooperation is required to achieve the United States’ goal of capping the price of Russian oil to prevent Moscow from using the profits to expand its military infrastructure.

Modi reaffirmed his call for “the path of ceasefire and diplomacy” in the conflict in Ukraine and discussed efforts made by world leaders to pursue a “path of peace” during World War II. His nation will take over the G-20 presidency from Indonesia.

Separately, according to U.N. spokeswoman Florencia Soto Nio, Lavrov and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres met on Tuesday to discuss the Black Sea Grain Initiative. The agreement is up for renewal on Saturday.

It allowed major grain exporter Ukraine to resume exports from ports that had been closed due to the fighting.

In response to Russia’s invasion, the United States and its allies imposed their own export restrictions and other penalties, making it more difficult for the Russian military to obtain essential technologies and resupply with drones, artillery, and other weaponry.

Chinese leaders have mostly refrained from publicly criticizing Russia’s conflict, despite Beijing avoiding providing the Russians with direct support, such as guns.

About Moscow’s subtly nuked threats as its invasion of Ukraine has stalled, Biden said that during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday.

They discussed the war and “reaffirmed our shared belief” that using or even threatening to use nuclear weapons was “totally unacceptable.”

Xi warned the G-20 leaders against using the world economy as a weapon.

In remarks that were translated, he stated, “We must forcefully fight the attempt to politicize food and energy issues or use them as instruments and weapons.”

French President Emmanuel Macron stated that they demanded “respect of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine” during their meeting with Xi.

Macron stated in a tweet that China and France  France and China were determined to “put an end to the escalation of the war in Ukraine and deal with its consequences.”

Bersama dengan Presiden Joko Widodo, kita meninjau tantangan G20 yang berada di bawah Presidensi Indonesia. pic.twitter.com/dhaCaO2kLB

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) November 15, 2022

Rishi Sunak, the prime minister of the United Kingdom, and Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister of Italy, are two crucial new collaborators in Biden’s initiative.

Sunak, who became leader last month, has vowed to uphold his conservative forefathers’ unwavering support for Ukraine. He and Biden planned to discuss long-term military bolstering strategies during their meeting on Wednesday.

Although Meloni has promised to keep giving Ukraine weapons and assistance, there are still concerns about her far-right coalition’s resolve to confront Russia.

She and Biden spoke about China, the climate crisis, the effect of Russia’s invasion on the world energy market, and their commitment to supporting Ukraine during their Tuesday meeting outside of the summit, according to a statement from the White House.

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