Key Takeaways:
- According to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, Canada and “a few” friends boycotted Russia at the G20 finance ministers’ meeting on Wednesday.
- Russian forces have assembled in eastern Ukraine, preparing to launch an onslaught against Ukrainians in the Donbas and Luhansk regions.
Canada and “several” friends walked out on Russia during the G20 finance ministers’ meeting on Wednesday, according to Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.
Freeland attacked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in a series of tweets, saying Russia shouldn’t be allowed to join the G20 summit because it is focused on the global economy.
In recent weeks, Russia’s unprovoked as well as bloody invasion of Ukraine, a sovereign democracy, has sparked global economic turmoil, adding to the pressures already putting strain on systems as a result of the pandemic.
Also read: Trudeau claims Canada would provide heavy weaponry to Ukraine
Freeland may also use the G20 gatherings to deliver a direct reaction to any Russian statements made in the plenary session, as a Canadian government official told Global News earlier on Wednesday.
The official said on the condition of anonymity because they are not allowed to speak publicly about the situation.
According to a spokesperson for Freeland, the invasion of Russia is “a significant threat to the world economy, raising the price of food and fuel and disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable among us.”
“Russia should not be included in these discussions,” Freeland’s press secretary, Adrienne Vaupshas, said.
“In the face of continuous Russian aggression and war crimes, the world’s democracies will not remain silent.” When the Russian delegation attempted to intervene today, Canada’s Deputy Prime Minister, US Secretary of State Janet Yellen, and several other democratic allies walked out of the G20 plenary.”
The announcement comes as the G20 finance ministers prepare to meet on Wednesday while Ukrainians continue to fight the Russian invasion, which began on February 24.
Russian forces have gathered in Ukraine’s eastern regions, ready for an offensive against Ukrainians in the Donbas and Luhansk areas.
However, the port city of Mariupol is attracting worldwide attention as a Russian request to Ukrainian leaders to submit or die expires.
According to Reuters, there has been no mass surrender, but the commander of a battalion believed to be holding out in the besieged city claimed his soldiers could only last a few days or hours.
Source: Global News
