Telling delegates it was an honor for Indonesia to host the event, Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, on Tuesday acknowledged the mood. “I understand that we need enormous efforts to be able to sit together in this room,” he said before the closed-door talks began. Indonesia’s President said the world cannot afford to fall into another cold war and said G20 members must work to “end the war”, in an apparent reference to the war in Ukraine. “Being responsible means creating not zero-sum situations, being responsible here also means ending war. If the war does not end, it will be difficult for the world to move on,” he told leaders before the summit began. The G20 brings together 19 countries and the European Union representing the world’s 20 largest economies, including Russia. It accounts for more than 80 percent of the world’s gross domestic product and 60 percent of its population. Indonesia sought to bridge the gap and the summit is the first since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine on February 24. Jokowi visited Kyiv and Moscow, extending an invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin despite calls within the G20 to exclude Russia. Putin refused and is represented in Bali by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Uncertainty about the announcement
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, addressed the summit via video link on Tuesday. On the eve of the start of the session, he made a strong reference to the “G19 summit” and in his speech later called for peace. “I am convinced that now is the moment when Russia’s destructive war must and can be stopped,” he told G20 leaders, according to a speech in Ukrainian obtained by the AFP news agency. “It will save thousands of lives.” Ukrainian President Zelensky speaking at the G20 summit in Bali. Passionate but detailed speech calling for the restoration of peace and respect for the UN Charter, the principle of territorial integrity in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/fxsXIpsuKV — Vincent Piket (@DubesUniEropa) November 15, 2022 Officials from the US and European countries are pushing for a joint G20 statement that would condemn the eight-month invasion and threats to use nuclear weapons. “I think you will see most members of the G20 making clear that they condemn Russia’s war in Ukraine,” a senior US official told reporters, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Russia’s war of aggression is condemned in the strongest terms,” the official said, adding that many “see Russia’s war in Ukraine as the primary source of enormous economic and humanitarian pain in the world.” However, it remains unclear whether all G20 countries would sign up to language that would so explicitly condemn Putin’s war. Diplomatic sources told Reuters news agency that given the difficulty of agreeing on a joint communiqué, which would have to be agreed by all parties, Indonesia was pushing for a statement by the leaders instead. The US and its allies are hoping to find common ground with countries that, while wary of condemning Russia, are also worried about the economic impact of a protracted war as people around the world struggle with rising prices and many nations head towards recession. Argentina and Turkey are among the countries hardest hit by food inflation, while India and South Africa have avoided criticism of the Russian incursion. China, represented by President Xi Jinping, has also refrained from punishing Moscow for the war, although it has regularly called for peace. The clash was part of the first face-to-face talks between Xi and US President Joe Biden. Described as “frank”, the talks took place in Bali on Monday and lasted three hours. The White House said the two leaders “reiterated their agreement that a nuclear war must never be fought and can never be won.” They also “underlined their opposition to the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine.” The Chinese reading reported that Xi told Biden that China was “very concerned about the current situation in Ukraine.” “China has stood by peace and will continue to encourage peace talks. We support and look forward to the resumption of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. At the same time, we hope that the United States, NATO and the EU will conduct comprehensive dialogues with Russia,” he said. Xi, on only his second trip abroad since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, also has bilateral meetings with other G20 leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
