G20 foreign ministers’ meeting ends: How West sparred with Russia over Ukraine war

The United States and its allies wrangled with Russia over the Ukraine war at the crucial G20 (Group of Twenty) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) in New Delhi today (2 March). The conference concluded without a consensus on Russia’s war in Ukraine, with India releasing a chair summary and outcome document. While most G20 members called for Moscow’s “complete withdrawal” from Ukraine, Russia and China rejected the statement, thus creating a stalemate, reported AFP.

Acknowledging the differences between the G20 countries, external affairs minister (EAM) Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said there were “divergences” on the issue of the war “which we could not reconcile as various parties held differing views.” “If we had a perfect meeting of minds on all issues, it would have been a collective statement,” he was quoted as saying by Associated Press (AP). Earlier in the morning, prime minister Narendra Modi had urged the foreign ministers of G20 nations to set aside their differences and build consensus on pressing global issues. “As you meet in the land of Gandhi and the Buddha, I pray that you will draw inspiration from India’s civilisational ethos - to focus not on what divides us, but on what unites us,” he had said, as per PTI.  Let’s take a look at how Moscow’s conflict with Ukraine dominated the G20 meeting , setting off a war of words between Russia and the West. US, allies slam Russia US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hit out at Russia over the war in Ukraine, calling on the G20 bloc to ask Moscow to cease hostilities. “We must continue to call on Russia to end its war of aggression and withdraw from Ukraine for the sake of international peace and economic stability,” Blinken said at the closed-door meeting, as per Reuters. “Unfortunately, this meeting has again been marred by Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war against Ukraine,” he told the foreign ministers at the G20 meet. The top US diplomat also underlined America’s efforts to boost energy and food security. Further, he pointed out that Russia has still not agreed to renew the Black Sea Grain Initiative that paves the way for the export of Ukraine’s agricultural products from its southern ports, reported AFP. [caption id=“attachment_12234442” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Russia’s war in Ukraine dominated the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting. AP[/caption] Blinken’s condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was backed by his European counterparts from Germany, France and the Netherlands. “Unfortunately, one G20 member prevents all the other 19 from focusing all their efforts on these issues the G20 was created for,” German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock said at the meeting addressing her Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, reported Reuters. “I ask you, Lavrov, to return to full implementation of New START (nuclear arms treaty) and to resume dialogue with the US. Because, as China rightly pointed out in its 12-points-plan, the threat of nuclear weapons should be opposed,” she added. Last week, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow will suspend participation in the New START, its last major nuclear arms control treaty with the US. French foreign minister Catherine Colonna said the conflict in Ukraine had hurt “almost every country on the planet, in terms of food, energy, inflation”. Colonna also urged the G20 to “respond clearly” to the war as it had during its Bali summit last year. The conflict was a “dirty war, waged in violation of all the laws of war and of simple humanity”, she said in the meeting, as per AFP. Russia strikes back Russia lambasted the West at the G20 talk, blaming it for the global political and economic crises. “A number of Western delegations turned the work on the G20 agenda into a farce, wanting to shift the responsibility for their failures in the economy to the Russian Federation,” Lavrov said, according to Reuters. “The West creates obstacles for the export of agricultural products of the Russian Federation, no matter how the representatives of the EU convince the contrary,” he added. According to RIA Novosti news agency, the Russian minister also accused the West of “shamelessly burying” the Black Sea grain deal. In a statement released by Moscow after Lavrov’s meeting with his Chinese counterpart Qin Gang on the sidelines of the G20 meeting, Russia alleged the West of using “blackmail and threats” against other countries. “A unanimous rejection was expressed of attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, to impose unilateral approaches through blackmail and threats, and to oppose the democratisation of international relations,” the Russian foreign ministry said, according to AFP. Lavrov said after the G20 meeting: “We speak about manners. Well, our Western counterparts have gotten really bad with these”. “They are not thinking of diplomacy any more; they now only deal in blackmail and threatening everyone else”, he was quoted as saying by BBC.  Brief talks between Blinken and Lavrov

Blinken and Lavrov talked for around 10 minutes on the sidelines of the G-20 conference.

As per AP, a senior US official said that the US Secretary of State conveyed three points to his Russian counterpart including America’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine to bring an end to the war. He urged Moscow to reverse its decision to suspend participation in the New START nuclear treaty and asked Russia to release detained American Paul Whelan. [caption id=“attachment_12234452” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Russia’s Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke briefly while ‘on the move’. AP[/caption] Russia’s foreign ministry confirmed that Lavrov and Blinken talked as they were “on the move”, but did not hold negotiations or a meeting, as per Russian news agencies. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook ,  Twitter  and  Instagram .