Although Ukraine is not a member of the G20, Zelensky has been invited by Indonesia and has said he will attend, albeit via video link.
The presidents of Russia and China, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, will attend the G20 summit in November, the president of Indonesia, which holds the rotating presidency of the forum of major economies, announced today.
US President Joe Biden is also expected to attend the meeting, at a time when Washington’s relations with Beijing and Moscow are at their lowest level, due to the tension in Taiwan and the war in Ukraine.
It was not certain that Putin and Xi would travel to Bali to attend the summit. Moscow has been isolated over its invasion of Ukraine while the Chinese leader has restricted travel abroad due to Covid-19.
However, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in an interview with Bloomberg that both will attend. “Xi Jinping will come, President Putin also told me he will come,” he said.
In June, the Kremlin announced that Putin had accepted Widodo’s invitation, subject to the condition that his health due to the pandemic would allow him to attend in person.
Joe Biden will also go to Bali, but the White House has not confirmed details of the trip, or whether he will meet with Xi in person. A spokesman for the National Security Council said only that “if Putin comes to the G20, then Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky should also attend.”
Although Ukraine is not a member of the G20, Zelensky has been invited by Indonesia and has said he will attend, albeit via video link.
Jakarta has been under pressure from the West to exclude Putin from the summit, but is maintaining a stance of neutrality. At the beginning of the year Joko Widodo visited both Kyiv and Moscow.
“Russia has no moral right to attend.”
A British Foreign Office spokesman said tonight that “Russia has no moral right to attend” the G02 meeting “as long as its aggression in Ukraine continues”.
“We welcome Indonesia’s efforts to ensure that the consequences of Russia’s war are discussed at the G20 meetings, as well as indications that Ukraine may be represented by President Zelensky,” he added.
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