Russian consul lauds ‘change of position’ on G20

Russia’s ambassador to Indonesia has welcomed Anthony ­Alba­nese’s decision this week to attend the November G20 Leaders’ Summit as a ‘good change of position’.

 

Russia’s ambassador to Indonesia has welcomed Anthony ­Alba­nese’s decision this week to attend the November G20 Leaders’ Summit as a “good change of position”.

Ambassador Lyudmila Voro­bieva made the comments in a press conference in Jakarta on Wednesday, two days after the Prime Minister met with President Joko Widodo and assured him of his presence at the Bali summit that Scott Morrison had indicated he would not attend if Russian President Vladimir Putin did so.

“It’s up to every leader to decide whether he will be attending the summit or not and, of course, it’s a good change of position,” Ms Vorobieva said.

“You remember Scott Morrison said he would not sit at the same table as a leader who invaded other countries. It is (US President) Joe Biden who comes to my mind because he is the leader of the country that has invaded so many countries in the world.”

As this year’s G20 host, Indonesia has faced pressure from Western countries – including the US, UK and Australia – to exclude Mr Putin from the talks. It has since sought to reach a compromise by inviting Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has said he will attend online.

Mr Morrison’s assertion that sitting with Mr Putin at the G20 summit would be “a step too far” raised questions in Jakarta over Australia’s support for Indonesia’s G20 presidency this year.

Mr Albanese assured Mr Widodo during his two-day visit this week that he would attend the summit, stressing the G20 was “critical at this time of global economic uncertainty”.

“I’m focused on sitting with President Widodo, not sitting with President Putin. It is in Australia’s interest to have good relations with our Indonesian friends,” he said on Monday.

More than 100 days after Russia launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the impact of the war has been felt around the world, including in Indonesia where prices of food and other basic necessities are rising.

Ms Vorobieva has previously said Mr Putin would attend the November summit, but on Wednesday would not confirm whether he would attend in person or virtually.

“There are a lot of factors ...we still have some more time to go,” she said.