Putin to not attend G20 summit in person in Bali, says Russian embassy

Jakarta: Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend in person the summit of leaders from the Group of 20 nations (G20) in Bali next week, CNN reported citing the Russian embassy in Indonesia. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will represent Putin at G20 Summit, Yulia Tomskaya, the chief of protocol at the embassy said.

Tomskaya further said that Putin is still making a decision on whether he will participate in one of the meetings virtually. Western nations and Ukraine have pressurised Indonesia, which is the G20 host, to condemn Moscow for its actions and withdraw its invitation to Putin.

However, Jakarta has resisted the pressure and intended to take a neutral position. Earlier in March, US President Joe Biden called for the expulsion of Russia from the G20, CNN reported. Meanwhile, Indonesia has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the summit as a guest. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Ukraine will not attend the G20 summit if Putin participates in the meeting.

As per the CNN report, the Ukrainian leader is expected to attend the meetings virtually. Notably, the 17th G20 Heads of State and Government Summit will take place on November 15-November 16 in Bali. Under the Indonesian Presidency, the G20 in 2022 will focus on the theme, ‘Recover Together, Recover Stronger.’

It is pertinent to note here that India will assume the Presidency of the Group of Twenty (or G20) for one year from December 1, 2022, to November 30, 2023. Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the logo, theme and website of India’s G20 Presidency via video conferencing on November 9. Addressing the gathering, PM Modi said India will preside over the G20 summit from December 1 and called it a great occasion for the nation.

Notably, the Presidency of the G20 rotates every year among members, and the country holding the presidency, together with the previous and next presidency-holder, forms the ‘Troika’ to ensure the continuity of the G20 agenda. Presently, Italy, Indonesia, and India are the Troika countries and Indonesia holds the current Presidency.