West considers exclusion
Putin wants to go to the G20 summit in Bali
03/23/2022 12:52 p.m
The G20 summit will take place in Bali in October. Russian President Putin is also planning to take part in the meeting of the 20 most important industrialized and emerging countries – despite the war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, several Western nations are considering expelling Russia from the G20.
Despite the war in Ukraine and international pressure, Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to attend the G20 summit on the Indonesian island of Bali in October. “It depends on the situation. But he (Putin) intends to come to the G20 meeting,” Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Lyudmila Vorobyova told journalists.
A little later, the Kremlin in Moscow said it was still too early to talk about it. “Of course, the situation in world affairs has changed dramatically and radically, so of course everything has to be reworked,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to the Interfax agency.
Western nations, meanwhile, are considering excluding Russia from the group of top 20 developed and emerging economies after attacking Ukraine. “We believe that Russia cannot go back to business as usual in the international institutions and in the international community,” said US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan. “But when it comes to specific institutions and specific decisions, we would like to consult our allies and our partners in those institutions before we comment.” On Tuesday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz also spoke out in favor of discussing such issues with international partners “and not making individual and individual decisions.”
China against Russia’s exclusion
China, on the other hand, rejects Russia’s exclusion from the G20 group of states. It is “the most important forum for international economic cooperation,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Weibin in Beijing. “Russia is an important member and no member has the right to exclude another country.” China is a key Moscow ally and has not yet condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“Excluding Russia will not help the global economy,” Vorobyova argued. The summit is also not the right forum to deal with the conflict. The spokesman for the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, Teuku Faizasyah, made a similar statement last week. Indonesia holds the G20 presidency this year. The Bali Summit will take place on October 30th and 31st.