Putin to Miss G20 Summit... Face-to-Face Meeting with Biden Canceled

Vladimir Putin, President of Russia [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Bu Aeri] Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the upcoming Group of Twenty (G20) summit held in Indonesia next week.

According to Indonesian media such as Detik News on the 10th, Luhut Panjaitan, Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment and head of the G20 summit support team, announced at a press conference in Bali that President Putin will not personally attend the G20 summit scheduled for the 15th to 16th locally.

He stated, "The Indonesian government respects the decision of the Russian government," adding, "Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will lead the Russian delegation."

Russia also conveyed similar news. Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Kremlin, said, "Minister Lavrov has been decided to represent Russia at the G20 summit."

As this G20 summit is the first event held after the Ukraine war, attention was focused on whether President Putin would attend. It was anticipated that if President Putin attended, he could meet face-to-face with U.S. President Joe Biden to discuss the Ukraine war.

Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia and chair of this G20 summit, personally visited Moscow and held multiple phone calls to invite President Putin to Bali. However, as the Ukraine war continues, expectations grew that President Putin would ultimately not attend, and President Jokowi recently stated in an interview that it seems difficult for President Putin to attend in person.

Russian state-run Sputnik News also reported, citing a spokesperson from the Russian Embassy in Indonesia, that President Putin will not attend the meeting in person but is expected to participate via video conference.

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