Russian President Vladimir Putin To Skip G-20 Summit In India To Focus On War In Ukraine

In a significant announcement, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, will not be attending the G20 Leaders' Summit in New Delhi.

The G20 Leaders' summit is scheduled to take place between 9-10 September.

Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Kremlin, stated that President Putin's primary focus at the moment is on the 'special military operation' in Ukraine.

This comes after President Putin's absence from the BRICS Summit in South Africa earlier this week, as well, which was attributed to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) accusing him of war crimes in Ukraine.

South Africa is a signatory to the ICC. However, the Kremlin denied that this was the reason for Putin's absence.

India, on the other hand, is not a member of the ICC.

US President Joe Biden is also scheduled to visit India for the summit where he will engage in discussions with other world leaders on various global issues, including the conflict in Ukraine.

Among the leaders expected to attend the summit are Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and French President Emmanuel Macron.

In addition to these leaders, India has also extended invitations to representatives from nine "guest countries" — Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates — to participate in the summit.

The G20 Summit, under India's presidency, is scheduled to take place between 9-10 September at the newly-built Bharat Mandapam convention centre in Delhi's Pragati Maidan.

The 18th G20 Leaders’ Summit will serve as the culmination of a year-long series of meetings and processes involving ministers, senior officials, and civil society.