Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated Tuesday’s Group of 20 summit on the Indonesian island of Bali, where leaders of major economies grappled with an array of issues from hunger to nuclear threats.
Hosts Indonesia has pleaded for unity and a focus on action to resolve problems like inflation, hunger, and high energy prices, all exacerbated by the Ukraine war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine has revived Cold War-era geopolitical divisions. The invasion has pummeled the global economy just as the world was emerging from the worst of the Covid pandemic.
A Western-led push to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated the first day of the two-day summit. The U.S. and allied nations are pushing for a statement to come out of the G20 summit that condemns Russia’s military actions.
Russia said the “politicization” of the summit was unfair. There is a draft of a 16-page declaration at the G20, in which diplomats acknowledged the rift. It is not yet formally adopted by leaders.
“Most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy,” the draft statement said.
“There were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions.”
The U.S. wants a clear G20 message against Russia’s invasion and its impact on the global economy, according to U.S. officials. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said there were encouraging signs of consensus that the war was unacceptable.
The summit marks the first time the G20 leaders have come together since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the summit in a virtual address that now was the time to stop Russia’s invasion and implement a 10-point peace plan he has proposed. Kyiv is demanding a full Russian withdrawal from occupied territories.
Zelensky called for restoring “radiation safety” at the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, price restrictions on Russian energy resources, and an expanded grain export initiative.
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