EU and Russia stand firm as war in Ukraine dominates ahead of G20 meeting

By Rupam Jain and Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, March 1 (Reuters) – On the eve of the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting, the European Union’s foreign policy chief said the success of the New Delhi meeting will be measured by what can be made about war and its consequences.

Russia said it would use the meeting to tell the world who Moscow believed was responsible for the political and economic crisis the world finds itself in.

The foreign ministers’ meeting comes days after a meeting of G20 finance chiefs in Bangalore that was also overshadowed by Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Delegates at the Bengaluru meeting squabbled over Russia’s condemnation of the war, failed to reach consensus on a joint statement, and settled for a summary document.

“This war must be condemned,” Josep Borrell, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, told reporters.

“I hope, I’m sure India’s diplomatic capacity will be used to impress upon Russia that this war must end,” Borrell said.

An EU source said separately that the EU delegation would not support a statement at the G20 meeting if it did not include a condemnation of the war.

The comments came hours after Russia said it viewed the G20 as a prestigious forum “where consensual and balanced decisions must be made for the benefit of all humanity.”

“We intend to speak firmly and openly about the reasons for and the instigators of the current serious problems in world politics and the world economy,” the Russian Embassy in New Delhi said in a statement on Tuesday.

“The destructive policies of the United States and its allies have already brought the world to the brink of disaster, set back socio-economic development and seriously worsened the situation of the poorest countries,” he added.

The New Delhi meeting brings together 40 delegations, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang.

Lavrov arrived late Tuesday and spoke with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Wednesday. He is also due to meet his counterparts from China, Bangladesh and South Africa.

The main G20 meetings will take place on Thursday, after a welcome dinner on Wednesday.

The G20 includes the wealthy G7 nations, as well as Russia, China, India, Brazil, Australia and Saudi Arabia, among others.

Host country India said the war in Ukraine would be a major talking point, but “issues of food, energy and fertilizer security, the impact that the conflict has on these economic challenges that we face” would also receive “due consideration”. .

Indian External Affairs Secretary Vinay Kwatra, the country’s top diplomatic official, said he also expected a clear message on terrorism. The role of cryptocurrencies will be part of the message, he said.

Rising tensions between the United States and China are also expected to be present at the meeting of foreign ministers.

(Reporting by Rupam Jain, Neha Arora, Shivangi Acharya, Writing by YP Rajesh; Editing in Spanish by Flora Gómez)