G20 summit fails to condemn Russia in Ukraine statement
India is hosting the G20 Summit this weekend, attended by the leaders of the world's 20 most powerful economies. At the meeting, the host, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, announced that consensus had been reached on the summit's final declaration.
Negotiators resolved differences over wording on the war in Ukraine. However, Kiev criticised the G20 leaders' statement on the war in Ukraine, in which they denounced the use of force but did not mention Russia.
Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping were absent from the meeting.
The summit opened in New Delhi with the African Union being welcomed as a permanent member of the G20.
Views at the summit were divided over the war in Ukraine, with Western countries pushing for a strong condemnation of Russia in the leaders' final declaration, while others called for a focus on broader economic issues.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement of consensus on the declaration, but did not offer details of the compromise wording.
"Thanks to the hard work of all teams, we have reached consensus on the G20 Leaders' Summit Declaration. I announce the adoption of this declaration."
For his part, India's foreign minister said that under the aegis of the presidency, the leaders had managed to identify a common vision for key issues, especially the Russia-Ukraine war, and that the summit represented the interests of the Global South.
"How hard was it to reach consensus on the Ukraine issue? You know, this, as I pointed out, is an 83-paragraph statement. There are a lot of issues that have been addressed, and some of them we have talked about. But obviously because of the ongoing conflict, the strong views on it, it has taken a bit of time, especially in the last few days, in the context of geopolitics," India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar pointed out.
The summit also discussed the India-Europe rail link.
"I am proud to announce that we have finalised the historic agreement for a new India-Middle East-Europe economic corridor. As a key part of this corridor, we will invest in ships and railways extending from India to Europe, connected by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel," said US President Joe Biden.
European commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the project would boost trade links.
"This is a historic moment. It will be the most direct link to date between India, the Arabian Gulf and Europe. With a rail link that will make trade between India and Europe 40% faster."
At the same time, Kiev on Saturday criticised the G20 leaders' statement on the war in Ukraine, in which they denounced the use of force but failed to mention Russia, international news agencies report.
"Ukraine is grateful to partners who tried to include strong wording in the text. At the same time, as far as Russia's aggression against Ukraine is concerned, the G20 has nothing to be proud of," Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
