Ukraine war clouds G20: No meeting brings consensus, no statement issued
NEW DELHI: The Ukraine conflict has clouded G20 meetings as none of the meetings held after the outbreak of the war has been able to arrive at a consensus as a result of which no joint statement has been issued.
“Indonesia, which is chairing the G20 presidency, has been struggling to get a consensus on outcome documents. There is a difference between how the West and Russia view the conflict. The Western nations use strong words against Russia, which it don’t accept. As a result of which there has been no consensus and no joint statement,’’ say sources.
With tensions between the West and Russia intensifying, convening all members of the grouping in the same room has been a challenge too. India is optimistic that it can bring its unique position and set of relationships with all major G20 countries to bear as it takes over as chair.
The G20 Summit is taking place in Bali next month (November 15th and 16th) and most heads of G20 states, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese Premier Xi Jingpin are expected to attend. “The consensus issue will continue even during the Summit in Bali, so there will only be chair declaration in Bali,’’ say sources.
Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union are members of the G20.
Meanwhile, at present G20 finance ministers meeting is going on in Washington which is being attended by 13 finance ministers. India’s finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman is a part of this meeting.
Sitaraman hosted a breakfast meeting in Washington on Thursday which was attended by the US Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen. She also held bilateral with her G20 counterparts.
“Sitharaman attended the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, met her counterparts from Japan, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Netherlands, and Egypt. From the neighbourhood, she met her counterpart from Bhutan. She also engaged with multilateral institutions and met the head of the Financial Action Task Force, the United Nations Development Programme, and OECD,’’ sources add.
India hopes it can bring G20 members closer
With tensions between the West and Russia intensifying, convening all members of the grouping in the same room has been a challenge too. India is optimistic that it can bring its unique position and set of relationships with all major G-20 countries to bear as it takes over as chair.