Russia’s top diplomat arrived on the resort island the night before the meeting, which starts on Tuesday. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova later denied that Lavrov had been hospitalized, but did not comment on whether he had received treatment. It posted a video of Lavrov, looking healthy in a T-shirt and shorts, asking him to comment on his treatment report. “They have been writing about our president for 10 years that he got sick. It’s a game that’s not new in politics,” Lavrov says in the video. Russia’s state-run Tass news agency quoted Lavrov as saying: “I’m in the hotel reading material on tomorrow’s summit.” Lavrov is the most senior Russian official at the gathering, which is being attended by US President Joe Biden, China’s Xi Jinping and other leaders. Four Indonesian government and medical officials told The Associated Press that Lavrov was being treated at Sanglah Hospital in the provincial capital, Denpasar. All the officials declined to be named as they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. The hospital did not immediately comment. Two of the people said Lavrov had been treated for a heart condition. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attendance at the G-20 was uncertain until last week, when officials confirmed he would not be coming and that Russia would be represented by Lavrov. The fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is expected to be among the topics discussed at the two-day G-20 meeting, which brings together officials from countries that account for more than 80 percent of global economic output.
