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Reuters: Western countries want to exclude Russia from G20 meetings

The United States and its Western allies are evaluating whether Russia should remain a member of the G20 after its invasion of Ukraine, according to sources who participated in the discussions in Reuters.

The possibility of any attempt to exclude Russia would mean a veto by others in the G20 group (which includes China, India, Saudi Arabia and others), raised the prospect of some countries not attending the G20 summit in 2022. , the sources reported.

The G20, together with the smaller G7 group, which consists of the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom, is a key international platform for coordinating everything from taking action to climate change up to cross-border debt.

Russia is facing an international “attack” of Western sanctions aimed at isolating it from the world economy, including its exclusion from the global SWIFT trading system and restrictions on its central bank.

“There has been debate about whether it is appropriate for Russia to be a member of the G20,” said a senior G7 source. “If Russia remains a member, it will become a less useful organization.”

Asked if US President Biden would pull Russia out of the G20 when he meets with his allies in Brussels this week, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told White House reporters that “we believe there can be no business again.” as usual for Russia in international institutions and in the international community ”.

However, the US plans to consult with its allies before any other announcement.

A European Union source has confirmed that discussions on Russia’s status are taking place at the forthcoming G20 summit, which is currently being held by Indonesia.

“It has become very clear to Indonesia that Russia’s presence at the upcoming ministerial meetings would be extremely problematic for European countries,” the source said, adding, however, that there was no clear procedure for excluding a country.

The G7 expanded into a new “G8” format to include Russia in a period of warmer relations in the early 2000s, but Moscow was permanently excluded from the group after the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

Source: Capital

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