G20 photocall cancelled after Miliband refuses to be pictured with Russian foreign minister

The group photocall at Friday’s G20 meeting was cancelled after foreign secretary Ed Miliband and his European counterparts refused to be photographed with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.US secretary of state Marco Rubio was forced to pull the plug on the photograph at the start of the meeting of the world’s largest economies in Atlanta, Georgia, after several European officials said they intended to boycott or walk out of the photograph that often kicks off the gatherings. Rubio decided to scrap the picture because he thought the controversy would be a distraction, according to two US officials, who spoke to the Associated Press.Some G20 countries had already expressed concern that the US invited Russia during its heightened attacks on Ukraine, especially after Donald Trump pushed ties with Kyiv to new lows by waiving fresh sanctions on Moscow and temporarily limiting logistical and intelligence assistance.In his intervention at Friday’s meeting, Mr Miliband said: “Let me say this directly to the Russian foreign minister – we all know who the aggressor in this war is.“Let’s talk about what happened at Dnipro railway yesterday. Only yesterday your drones attacked and killed 15 people.“And there are countless examples like this of you killing innocent civilians throughout this war.“We all know you are the aggressor. We all know you started this war four and a half years ago with the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.The G20 foreign ministers' meeting took place in Atlanta, Georgia (Reuters)“And Putin thought then he would win this war easily. But you are not winning this war.“Thanks to the courage of the Ukrainian people and the solidarity of countries round this table, you are not winning.“If you had the courage to tell the truth and to do what is right you would tell Putin that he is not winning this war and will not win.”A UK Government source told the Press Association: “We were not going to take part in any official picture with the Russian foreign minister.”They added: “The Foreign Secretary is here in Atlanta focused on the global challenges that are driving up costs for people at home.“The UK has a longstanding policy not to have direct, bilateral engagement with Russian ministers since the invasion of Ukraine and we are not about to change that.”Polish deputy prime minister Radosław Sikorski told reporters in Atlanta that “I am not the only one who does not want to be photographed with Lavrov.”German foreign minister Johann Wadephul said “there is no normality with Russia” as he explained there would be no photograph taken. But he added “we must exchange the controversies at the table here,” the German news agency dpa reported.He also said that “we also must not send falsely optimistic signals.”Atlanta police officers stand guard along a street as a sign directs attendees to the G20 foreign ministers' meeting in Atlanta (AFP/Getty)Lavrov has traveled only infrequently to NATO member states since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and resulting severe sanctions were imposed on Moscow.Rubio still opened the talks with an appeal for unity on the issues that threaten international security and trade.“We are in a critical moment,” he told his colleagues. “We are facing a series of interconnected economic and geopolitical crises.”He pointed to disruptions to global energy and food supplies, trade and freedom of navigation and said many are posing “severe threats to essential foundations of the global economic order.”Yet there was no sign that the G20 diplomats could come to consensus on many of the most contentious issues they face.Among them are the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, U.S. tariffs and Chinese machinations in the South China Sea. All have contributed to spikes in the global cost of fuel as well as uncertainty about trade.Diplomats who attended the opening session described it as cordial but said Russia’s position on Ukraine is unyielding — as is its opposition to Poland's membership in the G20 - the Associated Press reported.