TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova denies the news of the Russian Foreign Minister’s walk out Sergey Lavrov at the meeting of the G20 Foreign Ministers or FMM G20 Bali, on 8 July 2022. Zakharova said that the statement by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock about Lavrov was not ready to speak, was not true.
“Outside what place? What nonsense,” said Zakharova on Telegram, quoted from TASS, Sunday, July 10, 2022.
Zakharova explained that Lavrov had been in the room since the FMM G20 Bali started and held a series of bilateral meetings in different rooms there. He also mentioned Lavrov taking part in many other G20 events.
Previously, Der Spiegel, according to sources, reported that Lavrov left the meeting in Bali after he made a speech. He also ignored questions from German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell when met after the FMM G20 Bali on Friday, July 8 2022, said Lavrov was absent for most of the afternoon sessions of the G20 meeting in Bali. He left the room after giving his gaze.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi, confirmed that Lavrov had indeed left, but Lavrov had returned to join the forum.
“Lavrov returned to the meeting place. I had a one-on-one bilateral meeting with Lavrov between session 1 and session 2. At the beginning of session two, Lavrov was also there. When he wanted to go home first, Lavrov came to my table to say goodbye,” said Retno to Tempo, Sunday, July 10, 2022.
Lavrov, who was willing to be interviewed by journalists at the G20 Bali FMM, criticized Western countries for their massive criticism at the G20. Lavrov said the G20 forum in Bali was too focused on the Ukraine and West wars, squandering an opportunity to tackle global economic problems.
“‘Aggressors’, ‘invaders’, ‘invaders’ – we heard a lot today,” Lavrov told reporters.
The war in Ukraine has been going on since February 2022. Invasion Russia to Ukraine that caused Russia to be subject to economic sanctions from Western countries. The United States, Britain, and other Western countries, supported Ukraine against Russia by sending arms aid.
Russia is accused of being the root cause of energy, food and economic problems after Ukraine was attacked. Moscow rejects the Western countries’ accusations.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also caused friction in the G20 forum. Western countries have proposed to Indonesia as the presidency G20 this year not to invite President Vladimir Putin to the Bali summit in November 2022, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Instead, Indonesia was asked to invite Ukraine.
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DANIEL AHMAD | TASS | REUTERS
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