NEW DELHI: Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said he will not be able to attend the Group of 20 summit in New Delhi from September 9-10, so the Russian delegation will be led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the Indian prime minister’s office said in a statement.
“President Putin conveyed his inability to attend the G20 Summit in New Delhi on 9-10 September 2023 and informed that Russia would be represented by Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, H.E. Mr. Sergey Lavrov,” the statement said.
While expressing an understanding for Russia’s decision, Modi thanked the Russian president for the country’s consistent support to all initiatives under India’s G20 Presidency. “The two leaders reviewed progress on number of issues of bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual concern, including the recently concluded BRICS Summit in Johannesburg,” the statement said.
Putin and Modi agreed to remain in touch, according to the statement.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS that, “The format of the participation will be communicated later.”
India has held the presidency of the G20 since December 1, 2022. The summit in New Delhi will be held from September 9-10 in an in-person format. Invitations were sent to all G20 leaders, as well as heads of nine other countries: Bangladesh, Egypt, Spain, Mauritius, Nigeria, the Netherlands, the UAE, Oman and Singapore. Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said that New Delhi was counting on the participation of the leaders from all G20 countries. –Agencies
