Members disapproved of the Russian invasion at the end of the meeting in India; Russia and China were against resolution
The meeting with finance ministers and central bank presidents of the G20 member countries ended on Saturday (25.Feb.2023) without a consensus regarding the group’s position on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
At the end of the meeting, the group members released a summary of the main points discussed, including the conflict in the eastern European country. Here’s the full (187 KB, in English).
In paragraphs 3 and 4 of the document, the leaders condemned “vehemently the war in Ukraine”. However, Russia and China did not agree to sign the stretch.
According to the document, the invasion of Ukraine “is causing human suffering and exacerbating existing weaknesses in the global economy”with impacts on energy and food, in addition to aggravating inflation.
The letter also says that there were different opinions and evaluations regarding the situation. However, the document reinforces that the G20 is not a forum for resolving security issues. “We recognize that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy”declared the group.
On Friday (24.feb), the United States and the G7 (Germany, Canada, United States, France, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and European Union), group of the most industrialized nations in the world, announced new economic embargoes on Russia.
Among the measures is the increase in tariffs on Russian mineral products. According to the White House, the measure targets the main commodities exported by the Russians, while reducing the “U.S. dependence on Russia”.
On Twitter, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the g20 meeting provided “Important Opportunities” to discuss the Kremlin’s position on the war.
India presides over the G20 in 2023 and, as the host country, has the prerogative to propose the agenda for discussions. This year, the event took place in the city of Bangalore, in the south of the country. A last big meeting of the G20 was in Bali, Indonesia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov even went to the event in 2022. However, he left the meeting on the 1st day, with the justification that the meeting had a political bias, in addition, he criticized Ukraine for demanding conditions “unreal” to end the war. He was replaced by Finance Minister Anton Siluanov.
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