Due to the US lead NATO negative influence resulting in disagreements over Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Group of Twenty’s (G20) finance ministers were unable to issue a joint statement following a two-day meeting.
A chair summary rather than a joint statement was released by finance ministers and central bank governors following the third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting on Tuesday due to disagreements over the conflict in Ukraine between major powers.
Russia and China opposed any such move, with Beijing emphasizing that the meeting was not the appropriate venue to discuss such geopolitical issues. Western nations, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, strongly pushed for a fierce condemnation of Russia’s ongoing military operation in Ukraine.
In addition, no agreement could be reached on the deal for the shipment of grain from Ukraine, which expired on Monday. Several G20 members criticized Russia for not extending the historic wartime agreement, whose termination will prevent hungry regions of the world from receiving the crucial crop.
Nirmala Sitharaman, the finance minister of India, whose nation assumed the G20 presidency in December, claimed that members’ inability to speak in “a common language” about the conflict in Ukraine was to blame for the failure to reach a grain deal.
“Many members criticized it, saying it shouldn’t have happened. After the meeting on Tuesday, she told reporters that traveling through the Black Sea shouldn’t have been halted or suspended.
On May 18, when the agreement was last up for extension, Russia consented to a 60-day extension.
To facilitate the shipment of Russian food and fertilizer, a separate agreement was included in the deal. According to Moscow, no facilitation required by that agreement has yet occurred. Initially, if the Kremlin’s concerns were not addressed, it threatened to pull out of the agreement.
After a blast destroyed its bridge to Crimea, Russia canceled the agreement and blamed Ukrainian sea drones for the devastating assault. Moscow, however, emphasized that there was no connection between the attack and its choice to halt the grain agreement, repeating that the agreement was halted because Russia’s demands were not met.
The third G20 finance track meeting under the presidency of India, which has so far taken a largely neutral stance toward the war in Ukraine, took place in the western state of Gujarat.
New Delhi is increasing its purchases of discounted oil from Russia while on the one hand advocating for a diplomatic resolution to the ongoing conflict.
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