Absence of joint declaration on Ukraine in G-20 meeting a sign of division among countries: UN

A spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said the G-20 foreign ministers’ failure to agree on a joint declaration on Ukraine reflects the “division” between countries on the international stage. He said that this is not reflective of India’s efforts as a host. India, as the chair of the G-20, organized a meeting of foreign ministers in New Delhi on Thursday, in which foreign ministers of other countries including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang participated.

The meeting failed to agree on a joint declaration as the gap between Russia and the West over the Ukraine conflict became visible despite host India’s efforts to narrow differences. During a press conference in New Delhi, Blinken said that Russia and China were the two countries that did not support the joint declaration during the meeting.

Guterres spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a press conference on Thursday, “We were not a party to the meeting. I think naturally this in no way reflects India’s efforts as the host of the G-20. Since we were not at the table, it is not fair for us to pin the blame or analyze where the issue should have been. But this is another reflection of the division we see in many international forums.” Blinken and Lavrov spoke face-to-face on the sidelines of the G20 meeting for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago.

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