U.S. and Russia keep their distance at G-20 summit amid heightened tensions
Tensions higher than ever between the U.S. and Russia, both countries appear to be keeping their distance as Group of 20 (G-20) meeting takes place in New Delhi on Thursday.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that he has no plans to meet Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the summit, which comes after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine entered a second year last month.
Relations between the U.S. and Russia soured further in recent weeks after President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia was suspending its participation in the New START nuclear arms control treaty, the last remaining arms treaty between Moscow and Washington.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov move to their seats before their meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, on Jan. 21, 2022.
Russian Foreign Ministry | via Reuters
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said it wasn’t surprising that a meeting wouldn’t take place on the sidelines of the G-20 ministerial meeting.
“In my opinion, the position of the United States was clearly and long ago indicated. They are in favor of the escalation of conflicts in principle around the world, diplomacy, unfortunately, they, apparently relegated to the background,” Zakharova told reporters, news agency Interfax reported Thursday.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Thursday called on her Russian counterpart to return to the full implementation of the new START nuclear arms control treaty.
— Holly Ellyatt
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