War in Ukraine dominates G20
The leaders adopted a declaration deploring Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, denouncing any threat of the use of nuclear weapons
NUSA DUA, INDONESIA: The Group of 20 nations unanimously adopted a declaration on Wednesday saying most members condemned the war in Ukraine, but the document at the end of their summit acknowledged some countries saw the conflict differently.
The leaders of the world’s biggest economies also agreed to pace interest rate rises carefully to avoid spillovers and warned of “increased volatility” in currency moves.
But it was the Ukraine conflict, which started with a Russian invasion in February, that dominated the two-day summit on the Indonesian island of Bali.
“Most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine,” the leaders said in their declaration, signalling that Russia, which is a member of G20, opposed the wording. The declaration recognised that “there were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions” but three diplomats said it was unanimously adopted.
The G20 leaders also said in the declaration that the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons was “inadmissible”.
“It is essential to uphold international law and the multilateral system that safeguards peace and stability. This includes defending all the purposes and principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and adhering to international humanitarian law,” they said.
The declaration also voiced support for the Black Sea grains initiative ahead of a looming deadline for extending it, and called for coordinated action on food security.
The president of host Indonesia, Joko Widodo, said the Ukraine war had been the most contentious issue.
“The discussion on this was very, very tough and by the end the G20 leaders agreed on the content of the declaration, which was the condemnation of the war in Ukraine because it has violated country borders and integrity,” he said.
Emergency meetings
Earlier, the day’s schedule at the summit was disrupted by an emergency meeting to discuss reports on Tuesday of a missile landing in Polish territory near Ukraine and killing two people.
US President Joe Biden said the US and its Nato allies were investigating the blast but early information suggested it may not have been caused by a missile fired from Russia.
Russia said its strikes in Ukraine had been no closer than 35km from the Polish border.
Russia’s defence ministry also said it had not targeted Kyiv during yesterday’s widespread strikes. Reuters journalists in the city reported missile strikes, including on residential buildings, and power outages across the city on Tuesday in some of the heaviest attacks in the ninemonth conflict.