Russland is losing more and more support in the international community. The summit of the 19 most important industrial and emerging countries and the EU on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali began on Tuesday with appeals for an end to the Ukraine war. “If the war doesn’t end, it will be difficult for the world to move forward. If the war doesn’t end, it will be difficult for us to take responsibility for the future,” said Indonesian President and host Joko Widodo. These were clear words for Indonesia, which had hitherto pursued a middle course in the crisis.
EU Council President Charles Michel also confirmed on Tuesday that the G-20 would adopt a final declaration. According to agency reports, there should be talk of a “war”, while Russia describes the invasion as a “special operation”. Agreeing on a joint final declaration presupposes that China, Russia’s most powerful partner, has also given its consent.
Wrestling with the wording of the final declaration
The chief negotiators negotiated the outstanding issues right up to the end. The main issue was how to deal with the war in Ukraine. The diplomatic solution may lie in a differentiation between the different positions in the document. The dpa news agency quoted from a draft on Tuesday: “Most members condemned the war in Ukraine in the strongest possible terms.”
At Indonesia’s invitation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sent a video message to the G-20 on Tuesday. The EU ambassador, Vincent Piket, wrote on Twitter that he had given a “passionate and detailed speech”. The President of Ukraine called for restoring peace and territorial integrity to Ukraine. China may be keen to avoid unilateral condemnation of its ally.
Bloomberg agency reported that Beijing’s negotiators had rejected wording that was seen as “too aggressive” towards Russia. Chinese concerns that this could set an example in dealing with Chinese threats against Taiwan also played a role. However, the Chinese side also showed no will to appear at the summit meeting as a defender of the Russian war of aggression.
Xi Jinping speaks with Biden for three and a half hours
China’s head of state and party leader Xi Jinping met American President Joe Biden in Bali the previous evening for a three-and-a-half-hour talk. In doing so, he once again distanced himself from any threats involving nuclear weapons. Both sides agreed that “nuclear war should never be fought,” the White House said after the meeting. Xi was even clearer when Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Beijing. Xi said the international community must unite in rejecting the threat and use of nuclear weapons.
