G-20 foreign ministers fail to reach consensus on Ukraine war

By Shuriah Niazi

NEW DELHI (AA) – India said on Thursday that the Group of 20 foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi failed to reach a consensus on the Russian-Ukraine war.

The G-20 top diplomats could not "reconcile positions" on Ukraine, and "there were divergences" on issues related to the conflict, said India's External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at a press conference following the conclusion of the two-day meeting.

He did, however, say they reached an agreement on many issues.

“There was a great deal of agreement on a large number of issues like strengthening multilateralism, promoting food and energy security, climate change, gender issues, counter-terror,” Jaishankar said.

A joint statement could not also be issued at the conclusion of the G-20 foreign ministers. Instead, a "Chair's Summary and Outcome Document" was released.

“Most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy – constraining growth, increasing inflation, disrupting supply chains, heightening energy and food insecurity, and elevating financial stability risks,” said the statement.

“We are deeply anguished by the tragic loss of life and destruction across south-eastern Türkiye from the devastating earthquakes on 6 February 2023, and stand in solidarity with the Turkish people. We also convey our deepest sympathy to the Syrian people, who were likewise affected by the catastrophic earthquakes,” it added.

The event was held days after a meeting of the bloc's finance heads in Bengaluru, the capital of southern Karnataka state, which ended last week with disagreements over the Ukraine war by Russia and China.

The meeting, which began with a gala dinner on Wednesday evening, was the second since India assumed the G-20 presidency on December 1, last year.

According to the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, over 40 delegations attended the meeting, including top diplomats from Türkiye, Russia, China, and the US, which was "one of the largest gatherings of foreign ministers hosted by any G-20 presidency."

The bloc is a strategic multilateral platform that connects the world's major developed and emerging economies, which account for more than 80% of global GDP, 75% of international trade, and 60% of the world population.