BENGALURU, Feb 25 (Portal) – US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Portal that a strong statement condemning Russia’s war in Ukraine for a communiqué from the G20 meeting of financial leaders in India, which concludes on Saturday, ” absolutely necessary”.
Yellen said in an interview that omitting a war condemnation from the communiqué would be a step backwards from a statement made by G20 leaders on the Indonesian island of Bali last November.
Asked whether there would be no communiqué from G20 finance ministers and central bank governors without such a statement, Yellen said negotiations would continue.
The meeting on the outskirts of India’s tech hub of Bengaluru was due to end late Saturday.
“I think there must be a statement in the communiqué condemning Russia’s war. We’ve had it in Bali in the past and I think it’s something that’s absolutely necessary,” Yellen said.
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“And I think the G7 certainly agrees on that, so it’s something I would expect and I think is necessary and appropriate.”
However, Yellen’s comments came as hope dwindled that the group would be able to issue a joint statement in their final hours.
G20 leader India is urging the meeting not to use the word “war” in any communiqué, G20 officials told Portal. India, which currently holds the G20 presidency, has maintained a broadly neutral stance on the war, not blaming Russia for the invasion, is seeking a diplomatic solution and is sharply increasing its purchases of Russian oil.
In Bali, G20 leaders issued a statement that read, “Most members have strongly condemned the war in Ukraine,” signaling that Russia, a member of the G20, had opposed the language.
The Bali statement went on to say: “There were different views and different assessments of the situation and the sanctions.”
Reporting by David Lawder; Adaptation by Mark Potter and William Mallard
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