Officials of Russia and Indonesia confirmed that President of Russia Vladimir Putin will not be attending the G20 summit in Bali on the 15th and 16th of November, informs Reuters.
Putin will attend one of the meetings virtually, whereas in person, his place will be taken by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Indonesia feels pressure from Western countries and Ukraine to withdraw the invitation to Russia and to suspend its membership in the group. However, Indonesia’s officials remarked that it would take consensus of G20 countries to do so, and Indonesia can’t make such a decision by itself.
The reason for the difficult situation, walkouts, and threats to boycott the summit is Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
Indonesian president Joko Widodo is attempting to mediate the situation, and he hopes that it will work out. He said to Financial Times: «The G20 is not meant to be a political forum. It’s meant to be about economics and development.»