Russia stands firm as Rubio hosts G20 talks

Russia showed no sign Friday of softening its stance on Kyiv as G20 foreign ministers opened talks in the United States, with the Ukraine and Iran wars deepening rifts between the sprawling forum’s members.

Sharp disagreements emerged around the table, with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas accusing Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov of presenting “lies” on issues like the conflict in Ukraine.

“He put forward a lot of lies, a lot of false narratives” that Europeans were able to push back on, Kallas told AFP.

European officials also sought to put more pressure on Moscow, particularly to secure a ceasefire in the Black Sea, a key agriculture export corridor. Lavrov, in turn, was “quite provocative” in his remarks, a European diplomatic source said.

At a press conference, Lavrov criticized Europeans for their “arrogant boycott” while praising the willingness of US President Donald Trump’s administration to engage with Moscow.

Plans for a traditional family photo of G20 ministers were called off as some European officials objected to appearing alongside Lavrov, a diplomatic source told AFP.

European leaders have opted not to appear in photos with Russian delegations at other G20 meetings this year, as fighting drags on more than four years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

A US official said the picture was cancelled to avoid allowing “a ceremonial photo opportunity to become a diplomatic distraction.”

The gathering in Atlanta, taking place just days before US midterm elections, sets the stage for a G20 leaders’ summit at Trump’s Doral resort in Miami in December.

But it also comes as global energy prices have rocketed since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran in February. Tehran retaliated by choking off the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for oil and gas transit.