G20 Virtual Summit: Scholz Urges Putin to Withdraw Troops From Ukraine, While Biden and Xi Decline Participation

The virtual G20 summit was convened at the initiative of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the online meeting of the Group of Twenty held yesterday, in a video call that marked Putin's first participation since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on him to end the war and withdraw all troops from Ukraine, as reported by Voice of America.

"I urged President Putin to stop the attack on Ukraine and withdraw troops from Ukrainian territory so that this war can finally end," Scholz was quoted as saying during a press conference in Berlin by France Presse.

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, joined Scholz in addressing the journalists. She "welcomed Putin's proposal to work for peace in Ukraine" and added, "We must not forget that Ukraine has an aggressor and an attacked party."

According to Reuters, Putin stated at the G20 summit that "we need to think about how to stop the tragedy of the war in Ukraine." He also used the term "war" for the first time instead of the Kremlin's term "special military operation," Reuters noted.

However, U.S. President Joe Biden and China's leader Xi Jinping did not participate in the virtual summit.

Recall that last week, Biden and Xi held direct talks in the U.S. and discussed the issue of Russia's war against Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza. The leaders of the U.S. and China agreed to restore military cooperation between the two countries and consolidate efforts to limit the production of the synthetic drug fentanyl. Joe Biden announced this at a press conference following the meeting with the Chinese leader.

The conversation lasted over four hours and marked the first meeting between the two leaders since the G20 summit in Indonesia, held in November of last year. Moreover, Xi visited the U.S. for the first time since 2017.

According to updated data from the Atlantic Council, China increased the import of military goods, playing a crucial role in Russia's ability to maintain its military positions and continue aggressive warfare in Ukraine.

In October, Russian dictator Putin visited Beijing, where he discussed further deepening cooperation with Xi Jinping.