Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping will not travel to Rome to attend G20 summit, will attend international forum via video conference

President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, And his colleague from China, Xi Jinping, He will not attend the summit on October 30 and 31 Heads of state and government Of the G20 According to the organization, it is to be held in Rome. Both decisions, for reasons of a corona virus infection that are not yet complete, may leave the international forum without a solid agreement. Rising tensions between the West with Moscow and Beijing. The summit of the Italian capital is considered particularly important UN COP26 comes before the Climate Change Conference Will take place in Glasgow, where the position of the G20 countries will be important.

Two weeks before the summit in Rome, sources close to the organization said Shi will not attend the meeting, which will be held at the La Noula Convention Center (La Nube), from the EUR area of ​​the Italian capital. Putin, While, “He expressed his desire to attend the summit via video conference”, According to the Kremlin’s Sputnik news agency after a telephone conversation between Russian President and Italian Prime Minister Mario Troy.

Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, Quoted by RIA Novosti Putin’s decision was triggered by a corona virus infection, Given that Russia has been recording deaths and thousands of new cases in recent days.

Putin was briefly isolated last month Dozens of people around him were diagnosed with Govt-19. Last week, after a recurring cough at a government meeting, he said he had a cold.

He argued that Chinese diplomacy is presidential Xi Jinping will not attend the G-20 summit, which marks safety measures in the structure of corona virus infection. The news, which was confirmed on Tuesday, will be known at a meeting of G-10 ambassadors in Florence in September, four people who knew about the matter told Bloomberg News Agency.

In that regard, Chinese diplomats explained that he did not plan to go to Rome to avoid being subjected to this action once he returned to the country, as he would be forcibly isolated upon entering the Asian country. Shi has not traveled outside the country since January 2020, when the epidemic broke out.Although he maintains contact with his international colleagues through phone calls and virtual encounters.

Earlier seedlings

G and Putin did not attend last week’s extraordinary virtual G20 summit dedicated to the crisis in Afghanistan. Called by Drake, in which they were released by ministers and regional representatives. “As far as I know,” his absence was “not due to specific foreign policy reasons,” the Italian prime minister said at the time, emphasizing that his direct participation in the G20 in Rome was “fundamental”.

The absence of Russia and China was worst during the G20 foreign minister’s summit in the Italian city of Modera last June., The first face-to-face meeting since the outbreak of the forum uniting the 19 richest countries in the world, joined the European Union (EU).

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi decided to attend by video conference, while his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov sent his deputy minister, which caused unrest among his European colleagues. “You need to talk to others when you are together. We need talks with Russia and China.”Then the German Foreign Minister said, Haiko Mass.

Both Xi and Putin are determined to avoid multilateral appointments. Last week, the Russian president said he would not attend World Climate Conference COP26It will meet in the Scottish city of Glasgow from October 31 to November 12, “due to an epidemic situation”. According to British officials quoted by the BBC, Xi was not expected to do so, due to protocols surrounding the corona virus in China and real concerns about COVID-19 abroad.

Always strong bonding

However, the G20 summit is an agenda that will take place in the midst of a subtle moment on a global scale, marked by crises of various magnitudes. Climate change, the distribution of vaccines against Govt-19 and the global economy affected by the epidemic. Italian diplomats noted on Tuesday that the positions of China and Russia were crucial to many of these issues, and that the absence of their leaders would make it difficult to sign a major agreement.

As relations between the two countries with Western powers have deteriorated in recent years, the link between Beijing and Moscow has strengthened.. Days ago, Putin praised China as a very reliable partner for Russia During their annual question and answer session at the Traditional Energy Week Forum.

“China is our largest trading and economic partner. The volume of trade between Russia and China is increasing, and it will exceed $ 100 billion Americans in the first nine months of this year, “Putin said:” Russia and China can always come to the negotiating table and find mutual solutions. “

Russia’s move toward the world’s second-largest economy was an alternative to its sanctions Link in 2014 of the Crimean Peninsula And its role in the crisis in Ukraine, as Beijing strengthened its ties with the United States as tensions escalated in almost every way.

On the diplomatic front, the two countries often rely on the UN Security Council to deal with the weight of Washington and its allies on issues such as Syria, Iran or Afghanistan, in addition to rejecting criticism of human rights abuses in their territories.

The corona virus health crisis has further heightened tensions with the West, Both Beijing and Moscow by initiating a policy of providing vaccines to increase their position globally. However, It came to the White House of Democrat Joe Biden And his desire to re-establish American leadership in the world The strategic alliance between Russia and China was coordinated.