Blinken and Lavrov meet briefly at the G-20 summit in India

America and Russia face off on neutral ground. The US Secretary of State hoists the White House flag. Anthony Blinkenand Kremlin Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov. organization, a summit G20 India, a country that maintains strong alliances with both actors and has so far not condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It was the US side that made this first high-level meeting public, albeit very briefly Just 10 minutes, against the backdrop of the Ukraine war between the two countries. Although both had agreed at previous international summits G20 in Bali Last year, Blinken and Lavrov saw each other for the first time since January 2022, a month ago. Moscow will launch an invasion.

According to the AP agency, a senior Washington official used the Blinken discussion to make three basic points clear to Lavrov: The U.S. will support Ukraine in the conflict until it ends the war, and Russia must reverse its decision to suspend its participation. The New START Nuclear Treaty And Moscow should release the former navy Paul WhelanHe was arrested in Russia in 2018 on espionage charges.

From Moscow they have not yet commented on the content of the meeting, only their foreign affairs spokesman, Maria Zakharova, indicated that Blinken would have requested to speak with Lavrov. A meeting took place during the break after the first part of the G-20 foreign ministers’ session on Wednesday, when delegates had time to hold meetings on the sidelines of the summit.

Indian diplomatic baton

India is at the forefront of the global diplomatic agenda this week. This year the South Asian giant is dancing on par with the US and Russia, presenting itself as the world’s largest democracy A rotating chair of the G-20. Its role as a neutral power, weighing heavily on the geopolitical table, positions it as a potential host for the emissaries of almost all the protagonists of the scene centered on the war in Ukraine.

New Delhi tried to keep other debates at bay Food safety wave Humanitarian aidBut the diplomatic leaders of the Western powers took advantage of Lavrov’s presence in front of them. He demanded that his country stop the invasion.

“We must continue to call for an end to Russia’s war of aggression and withdrawal from Ukraine for the sake of international peace and economic stability,” Blinken stressed, taking advantage of the presence of the Chinese foreign minister. The Queen gang, to urge Beijing not to provide military support to Russia. “(China) cannot present itself publicly as a peacekeeping force as long as, one way or another, it continues to fan the flames of the fire that Vladimir Putin has lit,” Blinken said.

Speaking directly to the Russian minister, his German minister, Annalena BaerbachHe also called for an end to Putin’s military offensive. “You come to this room and ask. stop the war Not in a month or a year, but today“, Beerbock pronounced. “Unfortunately, one member of the G-20 blocks all the efforts of the other 19 to focus on these issues for which the G-20 was created. What unites us all is that there is no place in the world where the Russian war has had positive effects.”

Russian media collects Lavrov’s response during his speech He accused the West of “turning the work of the G-20 agenda into a sham”.. Putin’s emissary again pointed to his rivals – the West – who tried to support countries in the global South and cut off the flow of Ukrainian grain from Black Sea ports to developing countries facing food shortages.

Antony Blinken, Sergey Lavrov and Qin Gang are joined in New Delhi, introducing the position in international forums of this magnitude. The Indian Prime Minister’s recorded speech this Wednesday specifically addressed to him, Narendra ModiTo open the meeting of foreign ministers of G-20 countries.

“We all have to recognize that Multilateralism is in crisis. The experience of recent years – financial crisis, climate change, pandemic, terrorism and wars – clearly shows that global governance has failed,” Modi noted. “We met once. Deep global divisions. We are responsible for those who are not in this room. Let’s not let the problems we can’t solve together get in the way of those we can.”

The prime minister said no group can claim global leadership without consulting those most affected by its decisions. “We need to focus on what unites us, not what divides us,” he continued.

“After years of progress, today we face danger Backlash in Sustainable Development Goals. Many developing countries struggle with unsustainable debt as they try to ensure food and energy security. They also suffer a lot Global warming Caused by rich countries. That is why India’s G20 chairmanship sought to give voice to the Global South.

These are the words of the leader of the world’s fifth largest economy, which is on the brink of becoming the most populous country in the world, if it hasn’t already achieved it. To directly target the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it is necessary to wait for the Indian minister to speak after Modi’s intervention. Subramaniam JaishankarHe pointed out that “respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity are essential guiding principles in international cooperation”.

Note to Moscow

A note to Moscow from a country that has yet to strongly condemn Putin’s offensive, which has been going on for a year Swelling to buy Russian oil at a discountAvoiding international sanctions, it continues to maintain a strong alliance with Washington, which is keen to extend ties with India to counter China’s growing power.

Apart from ministers from 19 richest countries in the world, more Joseph Borrell Representing the European Union, up to 40 delegates have gathered in New Delhi. Countries such as Egypt, Nigeria, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates or Spain were invited to the meeting with a reception on Tuesday night, where neither Blingen nor the Chinese minister attended.

Russian Lavrov was present at the table, at the request of the Russian Embassy in New Delhi, next to representatives of the United Arab Emirates and other countries invited from East Asia. Lavrov, on the sidelines of the official meeting, also held meetings with his Indian, Brazilian and Turkish counterparts. with the latter, Mevlüt ÇavuşoğluAccording to Ankara media, the meeting revolved around a future contract for the export of Ukrainian grain.

“I am sure that India’s diplomatic skills will be used to get Russia to understand that this war must end,” EU foreign policy chief Borrell told local media in an interview before Wednesday’s meeting.

The new meeting of the G-20 is being held in the Indian city of Bangalore, days after the meeting’s finance ministers failed to meet. Agreement to unanimously condemn Russian aggression in Ukraine. As was the case at the previous meeting in Bali in November, the group gave up issuing a joint statement due to lack of consensus on two of the 20 points they tabled. Russia and China countered with signature lines such as the G-20 “condemn in the most general terms the Russian aggression against Ukraine and call for a complete and unconditional withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.”