Putin not invited to G20 summit in Manchester, says Burnham

Published4 hours ago

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said Vladimir Putin is not invited to the G20 summit in Manchester.

Asked whether the Russian president would be invited to the annual meeting, which the UK is hosting in November 2027, Burnham said "no" because of sanctions against the Kremlin.

The UK has a longstanding policy not to have direct, bilateral engagement with Russian ministers since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

But US president Donald Trump has sparked controversy by inviting Putin to this year's G20, which he will host in Miami in December. The Kremlin has not yet said whether Putin will attend.

Russia is a member of the G20 - a group of 19 nations, the European Union and African Union - while Ukraine is not, but the ongoing war in Ukraine has loomed large over recent summits.

Putin has not attended any major global summit since he launched his invasion and ongoing war in Ukraine.

Asked about inviting him to the G20 in Manchester in 2027, Burnham told The Economist he "will not be coming because of an outstanding sanction" on senior Russian figures.

He said the meeting would provide "a real opportunity" to work with Chinese president Xi Jinping on safety regulations for artificial intelligence (AI).

Pressed on whether the UK could bring the US and China around the same table to agree on global AI supervision, Burnham said: "As I sit here today, that feels challenging, but we've got to hold out the need to find global agreements on AI.

"If we don't, the risks of recent times will magnify, they will significantly intensify.

"So you've got to go into it with that aim."

His decision not to include Putin in next year's gathering in Manchester comes after European diplomats refused to stand for an official photo with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in October.

The so-called "family photo" would usually include representatives from all nations in attendance, but this year it was cancelled.

The US decision to invite Lavrov in the first place - which itself came after further public rows between Trump and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky - also attracted criticism.

Discussing Ukraine, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband later told Lavrov at the summit: "Let me say this directly to the Russian foreign minister: We all know who the aggressor in this war is."

The UK last hosted the G20 summit in 2009. Next year's two-day event will take place in the Manchester Central Convention Centre in Manchester city centre and host thousands of diplomats and delegates, as well as world leaders.

The government has said it will use its G20 presidency in 2027 to "reinforce global economic stability" and "benefit people in every part of the UK".

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