Putin to hold online meeting with G20 leaders for the first time in years

Vladimir Putin will take part in the G20 summit online on November 22, 2023. This is going to be the first time when the Russian leader takes part in an international event with the participation of his Western counterparts.

The summit will take place on November 22, 2023. India, which is presiding over the G20 this year, is organising the event.

Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that the parties would discuss the situation in the global economy and finance, the climate agenda and other issues.

"The agenda is clear — this is the current situation, which is very, very turbulent. Of course, the position of the Russian Federation will be announced, even though it is quite well known, consistent and balanced," Dmitry Peskov said.

The G20 offline summit ended in New Delhi on September 10. On the first day of the event, September 9, the final declaration was adopted. The G20 countries then noted in their declaration that world markets needed not only Ukrainian, but also Russian food and fertilizers.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed holding the online summit. Arindam Bagchi, an official representative for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Indian authorities sent out invitations to the online summit.

US President Joe Biden may refuse to participate in the summit. With Thanksgiving being just around the corner, Jo Biden may not take part in the online summit, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov represented Russia at the G20 summit in New Delhi in September. The Kremlin said that Putin had a busy schedule.

At the Valdai Forum on October 5, Putin said he refrained from traveling to BRICS and G20 summits not to "create problems for the friends” who organised them.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the countries of the global South did not let the G20 summit agenda be focused on Ukraine alone. Most of the declaration was devoted to problems of the global economy, technology development, green transition and reform of international institutions, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organisation.