Russia's Lavrov Says West tried to 'Politicize' G20 Declaration
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Western countries had tried to "politicize" a joint declaration at the Group of 20 (G20) summit, accusing them pushing to include a line condemning Russia's war in Ukraine on behalf of all participating countries.
A draft declaration by leaders of the G20, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, said "most" members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine, highlighting Russia's strong opposition to any language seen to criticize its actions.
"Yes, our Western colleagues tried in every way to make that declaration politicized and tried to push through language that implied condemning the actions of the Russian Federation on behalf of the entire G20, which includes us," Lavrov said.
"But let's do this in a fair way and let's make it clear that, on this topic, we have differences," Lavrov said.
"Yes, there is a war going on in Ukraine, a hybrid war that the West has unleashed and been preparing for years," Lavrov said.
The war, which Russia describes as a "special military operation", has overshadowed the summit despite calls from host Indonesia for unity and to focus on action to resolve global economic problems such as inflation, and food and energy security.
Lavrov, who heads Russia's delegation at the summit after the Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin was unable to attend, said work on the declaration was nearing completion and that it would be approved after Wednesday's meeting.
"The declaration in question covers all the areas that have been discussed, including food and energy, healthcare, and digitalization," he said.