Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed its dissatisfaction with the G20's joint declaration, characterizing it as "unimpressive." This discontent stems from the fact that the declaration does not have any mention to Russia. Oleg Nikolenko, the spokesperson for the foreign ministry, took to social media to underscore the deficiencies in the document.
He shared a screenshot of the relevant section of the joint declaration, where he had crossed out several parts of the text in red and replaced them with wording that reflects Ukraine's perspective, emphasising that Ukraine is a victim of unprovoked Russian aggression.
Notably, this year i
n addition to the leaders of the 19 G20 nations and the European Union, India has extended invitations to the heads of state or government from nine other countries for the summit. Despite Western pressures, the Modi government decided not to include the President of Ukraine in this list of "special invitees."
According to Reuters, Nikolenko posted on Facebook, saying, "It is clear that the participation of the Ukrainian side (in the G20 meeting) would have allowed the participants to better understand the situation."
He pointed out that the document had stated that "all states" should "refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state."
Nikolenko said that there was no direct reference to Russia in the declaration, unlike a previous G20 statement from Bali in 2022, which cited a UN resolution condemning "in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine."
What did the G20 Bali Declaration say?
At the G20 summit held on the Indonesian island of Bali in November 2022, a Western-led initiative took center stage, focusing on condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This summit brought together leaders from major economies to address a wide range of pressing global issues, including concerns such as hunger and nuclear threats.
During this annual gathering of G20 leaders, which took place more than eight months after the conflict began in Ukraine, the group issued a statement expressing its condemnation of the Russian Federation's aggression against Ukraine stating "deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine". The statement also called for Moscow's immediate and unconditional withdrawal from Kyiv.
Of note, the Bali statement acknowledged that while "most members" strongly condemned the war in Ukraine, there were varying perspectives and assessments of the situation, as well as the sanctions imposed.
“Many members agreed that the recovery of the global economy has slowed and is facing a major setback as a result of Russiaôs war against Ukraine, which was strongly condemned, and called for an end to the war. One member expressed the view that the sanctions are adding to existing challenges,” the statement had mentioned.
What does the G20 Delhi Declaration say on Russia-Ukraine war?
During the G20 summit, leaders collectively urged all nations to abstain from employing or threatening to employ force to acquire territory. They also asserted that considering the use of nuclear weapons is "inadmissible." This subtle critique, in the context of Russia's actions in Ukraine, marks a significant departure from the declaration made during the previous G20 summit in Indonesia.
The 2023 New Delhi Declaration, unlike its Indonesian counterpart, does not explicitly mention Russia in connection with the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Instead, it emphasizes the importance of all countries respecting the territorial integrity of other nations. The declaration underscores that the G20 forum is not the appropriate platform to address geopolitical and security matters, which have the potential to greatly impact the global economy.
Additionally, the Delhi Declaration is being seen as climbed down by the West, which has previously called for strong condemnation of Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Responding to this External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on Saturday while addressing a press briefing said the situation was different a year ago and the New Delhi Declaration “responds to the situation and concerns as it is today”.
Jaishankar while responding to a question on the change in language referring to the Ukraine conflict in the New Delhi Declaration from the G20 position in the Bali document, said, "Regarding the change in language on the Russia-Ukraine conflict from the Bali Declaration - Bali was Bali, New Delhi is Delhi. Many things have happened since the Bali Declaration."
