Putin at G20: An icy reception, and an early exit?

Canada's prime minister told Russian President Putin:  "I guess I'll shake your hand, but I have only one thing to say to you: You need to get out of Ukraine."

Russia's President Vladimir Putin faced a chorus of criticism Saturday at a world leaders' summit, where the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine threatened to overshadow talk of global economics.

Putin will be leaving the G-20 summit early, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). "The programme of the second day (for Putin) is changing, it's being cut short," a source in the Russian delegation told AFP on condition of anonymity.

European Union President Herman von Rompuy said that while the Ukraine conflict was not on the agenda of the Group of 20 wealthy and developing economies, the topic would be discussed between President Barack Obama and EU leaders in Brisbane ahead of a European Union decision on further sanctions against Moscow.

"We will continue to use all diplomatic tools including sanctions at our disposal," von Rompuy told reporters. "The EU foreign ministers will on Monday assess the situation on the ground and discuss possible further steps."

"We need to avoid a return to a full-scale conflict," he said.

Putin received a less-than-warm welcome from Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper when he approachedHarper for a handshake.

"I guess I'll shake your hand, but I have only one thing to say to you: You need to get out of Ukraine," Harper told Putin, according to the prime minister's spokesman, Jason MacDonald.

As for Putin's reaction? "I can say that he did not respond positively," MacDonald said in an email, declining to give further details.

In a speech to a Brisbane university audience, Obama said that the United States was a leading voice in opposing Russian aggression in Ukraine, which he described as "a threat to the world."

He referred to the shooting down on July 17 of a Malaysia Airlines jet by a missile suspected to have been fired by Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine with the loss of 298 lives, including 38 Australian citizens and residents.

"As your ally and friend, America shares the grief of these Australian families and we share the determination of your nation for justice and accountability," Obama said.

Von Rompuy called for both sides to abide by the cease-fire agreement between Ukraine and the rebels that was signed in Minsk, Belarus, in September.

Russia must use its influence on the rebels to ensure they comply with the Minsk agreement, stop the flow of weapons and troops from Russia and withdraw Russian troops already in Ukraine, von Rompuy said.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry issued a similar call. The State Department said Kerry expressed "grave concern" about increased Russian support for the separatists and called for the implementation of the Minsk agreement, including a cease-fire, border monitoring, release of all hostages and a return to dialogue during a discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Von Rompuy declined to comment on the likelihood of the EU deciding to ratchet up sanctions.

"Russia has still the opportunity to fulfill its Minsk agreements and chose the path of de-escalation, which could allow sanctions to be rolled back," he said. "If it does not do so however, we are ready to consider additional action."

___

Associated Press writer Kristen Gelineau contributed to this report.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

QR Code to Putin at G20: An icy reception, and an early exit?
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2014/1115/Putin-at-G20-An-icy-reception-and-an-early-exit
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe