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Putin not planning video address to G20: Kremlin
Asked why Putin was not going to attend the G20 summit in Bali, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was related to Putin's schedule and the need to stay in Russia.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin gives a speech during the Victory Day military parade at Red Square in central Moscow on May 9, 2022. Russia celebrates the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany during World War II. (AFP/Mikhail Metzell)
Russian President Vladimir Putin does not plan to address the Group of 20 summit via video, the Kremlin said on Friday.
Asked why Putin was not going to attend the G20 summit in Bali, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was related to Putin's schedule and the need to stay in Russia.
The Kremlin, which has been mired in a protracted conflict in Ukraine and threatened the West with nuclear weapons, will instead send Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Putin may take part in the November 15-16 summit by video link, officials said.
"A decision has been made that Sergei Lavrov will represent Russia at the G20 summit," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
A trip to the summit in Bali would have put Putin in the same room as US President Joe Biden for the first time since the Russian leader sent troops to Ukraine on February 24.
Biden has fiercely criticised Putin and ruled out meeting him in Bali if he went, unless they discussed the release of Americans held in Russia.
Yulia Tomskaya, chief of protocol at Russia's embassy in Jakarta said that Putin could participate "virtually."
"President Putin's programme is still being worked out," she told AFP on Thursday.
The confirmation Putin will not be present followed months of uncertainty over his summit plans.
Political analyst Konstantin Kalachev said Putin did not want to step out of his comfort zone and face uncomfortable questions.
Putin's refusal to attend the summit in person also suggests he does not have any firm proposal to end the offensive in Ukraine.
"There is a sense of a dead end, and without concrete proposals Putin simply has nothing to do at this summit," Kalachev told AFP.
Coordinating minister of maritime and investment affairs, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, told reporters that Putin would not travel because "maybe (he) is busy in his country" and said leaders should respect his decision.
