Indonesian President Jokowi: "Putin Likely Unable to Attend G20 Summit"

Jokowi Has Worked Hard to Invite Putin... "A Place to Discuss Economic Development, Not a Political Forum"

President Joko Widodo of Indonesia (left) and President Putin of Russia [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Indonesian President Joko Widodo stated on the 8th that Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to attend the upcoming G20 summit, which will open on the 15th in Bali, Indonesia.

According to the daily Kompas on the 8th, President Joko Widodo said in an interview with a British media outlet released the previous day that when asked about Putin's attendance, he recently spoke with President Putin and "got a strong impression that it would be difficult for him to attend the meeting in person."

Regarding calls, mainly from Western countries, to expel Russia from the G20, President Joko Widodo emphasized, "Russia has been invited to attend the G20 summit," and "the G20 is not a political forum but a place to discuss economy and development." Indonesia maintains a non-aligned neutral diplomatic stance.

He particularly said, "We are deeply concerned about the rising tensions among the world's major powers," and "We do not want to become hostages of a new Cold War."

As the chair of this year's G20 summit, President Joko Widodo has hoped for President Putin's attendance, maintaining the position that demands to exclude Russia, which is not a chair country, from the G20 cannot be met without unanimous agreement from all member countries.

In June, he personally visited Moscow to invite President Putin and recently urged his attendance again during a phone call. Due to President Joko Widodo's efforts, there has even been speculation about President Putin visiting Bali and meeting face-to-face with U.S. President Joe Biden.

Russia has not yet officially announced whether President Putin will attend.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.