Vladimir Putin to attend G20 summit? Here's what Kremlin spokesperson had to say

Russian President Vladimir Putin may attend the G20 Summit in India in September this year, however, no decision has yet been made, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told media reporters on Monday, March 13. 

When asked if Putin's participation in the summit in India was being considered, Peskov, according to Russian news agency TASS, said, "It cannot be ruled out. But no decision has been made yet." Peskov further stated that Russia continues its full participation in the G20 format, and we intend to continue it. Notably, the G20 summit is scheduled to take place in India on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi.

'G7 format does not reflect the global economy as a whole': Kremlin

Further speaking about BRICS, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, "The Group of Seven (G7) format does not reflect the global economy as a whole, which is why Moscow focuses on the G20 and BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa). 

Commenting on Western analysts' report, Dmitry Peskov further said, "The share of BRICS nations in the global GDP has surpassed that of G7 countries. Irrespective of the findings by experts, it is safe to say that the economic clout of BRICS countries in the global economy is constantly growing."

The Kremlin spokesperson further stated that Russia believes that the G7 format obviously fails to reflect the economic wants and needs of the planet because the global economy is far from being limited to G7 nations. “The broader grouping, the G20, far more closely reflects the real state of affairs, which is what we are concerned with,” he added.

Last year, the Russian delegation at the G20 leaders’ forum in Indonesia's Bali was headed by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In 2020 and 2021, Putin took part in the G20 summits via video link, and in 2019 he came to the meeting of heads of state which was held in Japan. 

Lavrov attends two-day meeting of G20 Foreign Ministers

Earlier this month, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov attended a two-day meeting of the G20 foreign ministers in New Delhi. The meeting took place amid Russia’s escalating confrontation with the Western powers over the Ukraine conflict and India’s diplomatic tightrope walk on the issue.

Lavrov, during a press conference on the sidelines of the meeting, hailed India’s 'highly responsible and worthy of a great power' stance on key matters on the global agenda.

“The final document was not adopted by the ministers because the Western countries insisted on the text that was agreed at the G20 summit last year in Bali. They were ignoring completely our argument that since then a lot has changed, a lot has happened,” Lavrov said.