A G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta got off to a rocky start on Friday after European diplomats refused to take a “family photo” with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, hosting the gathering, scrapped the photo so it would not become a spectacle, DW reported with AP and AFP.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said there would be no group picture of European partners with Lavrov because “there is no normalcy with Russia.” About a third of countries at the talks signalled they would not stand beside Russian representatives; Australia and the UK were among those unwilling to appear, according to other outlets.

Rubio still opened with a call for unity on interconnected economic and geopolitical crises, citing energy and trade shocks. The two-day meeting is meant to prepare for a G20 leaders’ summit in December at Donald Trump’s Miami golf club. Putin has been invited; it is unclear whether Russia has accepted. Zelensky has said he would go to Miami for talks if Putin were there.

On the sidelines, Lavrov told DW that Putin is willing to meet Zelensky if the Ukrainian president travels to Moscow, with a safety guarantee — and declined to say whether Putin will attend the December summit. Putin has not attended a G20 leaders meeting in person since 2019.

EU high representative Kaja Kallas said ministers confronted Lavrov over Ukraine and rebuked what she called his “lies” and false narratives. UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband pressed for a just peace in Ukraine. Lavrov, under sanctions, said that despite recent U.S. gestures — including a diesel deal and waived energy sanctions — “no real progress” with Washington had been seen in practice.

South Africa, a G20 founding member, was not invited amid disputes with Washington; Ukraine, not a G20 member but previously invited, was also left out. With divisions so sharp, the meeting was expected to end without a joint communiqué, only a U.S. chair’s summary.

Source: European diplomats shun Russia at G20 gathering in the US (DW)