Indonesia Hopes for Russia’s Participation in G20

TURKISH PRESIDENCY VIA AP, POOL

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses the virtual G20 Leaders’ Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabiain, in a video conference from his Vahdettin Pavilion, in Istanbul, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020. Erdogan said Sunday that Turkey sees itself as a part of Europe, but he called on the European Union to “keep your promises” on issues such as the country’s membership bid and refugees.

Indonesia has ensured all members of the G20, including Russia, attend the ministerial forum in Washington DC. The decision to invite Russia was taken amid political pressure in the wake of an escalating conflict of interest between the US and its allies camp and Russia.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – As the leader of this year's G20, Indonesia sent the invitations on Wednesday (23/3/2022) to all G20 members for a meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors in Washington DC, United States, on April 20. The national team continues to communicate with all G20 members to ensure their participation in the hope that the meeting can produce good results.

A government official in the first ring of the presidential palace confirmed to Kompas that the invitations had been dispatched on Wednesday afternoon. It was said that all members of the G20, or the group of 20 economies with the largest gross domestic product in the world, were invited without exception.

G20 members consist of South Africa, United States, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada, South Korea, Mexico, France, Russia, Turkey and the European Union.

The emailed invitation carries meeting procedures, the discussion agenda and Covid-19 pandemic-related health protocols. The meeting will be held face to face. However, with the hybrid convening concept being adopted, Indonesia will also host a virtual meeting to accommodate the members who cannot turn up at the venue.

BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and German outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel talk before a meeting about the global supply chain, during the G20 Summit at the Roma Convention Center La Nuvola on October 31, 2021, in Rome, Italy.

The Washington event will be the G20’s first ministerial meeting since Russia's military offensive on Ukraine on Feb. 24. The event will be a barometer for Indonesia’s 2022 G20 presidency, with leadership capacity weighing on how it approaches the issues and makes decisions under the current geopolitical situation.

Conflict spillover

There is no direct link between Indonesia's G20 presidency and the Russia-Ukrainian war. However, the arising conflict of interest between the US/allies has inevitably reverberated into the G20. This is because the US and several western European countries as well as Russia, who are at odds in the conflict, are also members of the G20. At the same time, the feared global economic problems due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict with its ensuing enormous economic sanctions against the latter are unavoidably a relevant topic for the G20.

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British Ambassador to Indonesia Owen Jenkins, in an interview with Kompas in Jakarta, refused to comment when asked about his response to Indonesia's decision to invite all G20 members, including Russia, to the ministerial forum. He said the UK neither encouraged nor discouraged Indonesia from inviting Russia. He also evaded the question about what the UK would do in the G20 forums if representatives from Russia were present.

Jenkins stated that the UK supported Indonesia's G20 presidency and the efforts to achieve the goals of the forum’s agenda. He pointed out that many important issues had to be tackled together, such as the Covid-19 pandemic and post-pandemic economic recovery.

In a press statement released on the same day, the British embassy raised the issue of Russia's military offensive on Ukraine. It says the offensive should not be allowed to continue because “it clearly violates international law, sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as norms and rules that are integral to world stability, peace and security.”

Jenkins said it was not just a war between Russia and Ukraine, neither was Russia's war against Western countries, but an infringement against international law, peace and global security. “This is not business as usual," he said.

She expressed hope that the Indonesian government would not give in to the pressure imposed by the West.

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Lyudmila Georgievna Vorobieva said in a press statement that Indonesia had shown firmness in its decision to invite all G20 members. She expressed hope that the Indonesian government would not give in to the pressure imposed by the West.

KOMPAS/SUCIPTO

Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Lyudmila Georgievna Vorobieva .

While ensuring that Russia would honor invitations to all G20 activities, she said President Vladimir Putin was ready to attend the G20 summit in Bali, scheduled for Nov. 15-16 pending the development of the situation, including the Covid-19 pandemic.

Vorobieva accused the US and its allies of mobilizing the world to isolate Russia from almost all international organizations. She extended her appreciation to Indonesia over the invitation, saying the priority goals Indonesia put in its efforts in its capacity as the rotating chair of the G20 would be difficult to achieve without the involvement of all members. She said the G20 was an economic forum, after all.

As reported in China Daily, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday that Russia was an important member of the G20 and that no country had the right whatsoever to remove any other country from the G20 membership.

The G20, according to Wang, was an immense platform for international economic cooperation with the participation of the world's major economies.

"China supports Indonesia, which holds the G20 chairmanship in 2022, to focus on the theme 'Recover Together, Recover Stronger' and carry forward G20 cooperation in all areas following the established agenda," Wang was quoted as saying.

In recent weeks, a number of countries have pressured Indonesia not to invite Russia. If Indonesia had bowed to the pressure, it was believed the government would incur the consequences. Among them would be protests at home on suspicion of siding with one world power.

JUAN BARRETO

Members of the Ukrainian community take part in a demonstration against the Russian invasion in Ukraine in front of the Russian Embassy in Bogota, on March 5, 2022.

On the other hand, the decision to invite Russia is also likely to carry consequences as the countries that do not want Russia's presence might send only low-level officials with no decision-making capacity at the G20 forum. What might be even worse is that they boycott the meeting.

(This article was translated by Musthofid).