Political and diplomatic leaders of the G20 will meet next Tuesday and Wednesday in Bali, Indonesia, in a summit that will have the war in Ukraine as a transversal and dividing axisand the great absence of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The geopolitical discrepancies, which will also be notorious in the bilateral meeting they held this Monday US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinpinganticipate the difficulties in achieving a consensual final communiqué.
Bass the motto “Recover together, recover stronger”alluding to the blow caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in the world, the leaders will discuss the global health architecture, food and energy security and digital transformationsaccording to the schedule.
What is the G20 and how relevant is it?
The group brings together 19 countries with great weight in the global economy. Its members, to which the European Union joins, they account for about 90% of world GDP, 80% of trade and two thirds of the planet’s population. They also account for around 60% of all agricultural land and close to 80% of world trade in agricultural products.
What countries and organizations make up the group?
Germany, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, South Korea, United States, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, United Kingdom, Russia, South Africa, Turkey and the European Union are the members of the G20.
Spain participates as a permanent guest and there are some 14 international organizations that also attendincluding the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Health Organization.
In each edition, in addition, the host country invites other heads of stateas is the case this year for the presidents of Senegal, Cambodia, the Netherlands, Rwanda and Suriname, among others.
The Ukrainian president was also invited to attend personally, Volodimir Zelenski, but decided to participate by videoconferencejust as it has done in other international forums since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24.
Who will be the absentees?
The great absentee is Putin, who confirmed at the last minute that he will not travel to Indonesia for “agenda” reasons.as indicated by the Kremlin, and his country will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
The Brazilian president, Jair Bolsonaro, will not be present either.in line with his few public appearances since lost the elections against Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, so the country’s representation will be in charge of Foreign Minister Carlos França.
The other head of state who is not in Bali is the Mexican Andrés Manuel López Obradorin a decision linked to his reluctance to participate in this type of international forum, so his place will be taken by Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard.
How is the position of the countries regarding the war in Ukraine?
The conflict in Ukraine sparked by the Russian invasion will inevitably dominate much of the debate, as well as some of its consequences, such as the deepening of the food crisis, the escalation of inflation and energy security.
kyiv’s main allies at the summit, the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and Canada, will press for the final document to include a condemnation of the invasion, but the possibility of a group consensus is nil before the vote of Russia and other nations that exhibited a neutral position, especially China and India.
Turkey and Indonesia, for their part, emerged as mediators in the conflict. The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was together with the UN who mediated to achieve the agreement that allowed the export of grains that were blocked in Ukrainian ports due to the conflict.
While, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, as host of the summit, met with Putin and Zelensky and invited both personally to come to Bali to bring positions closer together.
For its part, President Alberto Fernández and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macronindicated that they have been working “to achieve a dialogue table between Russia and Ukraine,” according to the Argentine president in Paris.
Is the war in Ukraine part of the agenda?
The conflict is not officially on the agenda, but its consequences are difficult to ignore: rise in food prices, higher energy prices, slowdown in the economic recovery after Covid-19 and fears of recession.
It is a topic that cuts across the debates, despite Indonesia’s efforts to focus the meeting on issues of economic cooperation or climate change.
Who will be the next country to organize the G20?
The summits have been held at least once a year since 2008, with a venue that rotates among the member countries. This year it was Indonesia’s turn and from December 1 the presidency will be assumed by Indiawhich has already announced that the meeting between leaders will be on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi.
The symbolic transfer to the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, will be the closing of the summit, beyond the subsequent press conferences that some leaders will hold.
