US invites Putin to December G20 Summit

United Nations: The United States has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to the G20 in December, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, raising the possibility of an encounter with President Donald Trump while stressing that no new summit between the two leaders has been discussed.

“We’ve invited President Putin to the G20,” Rubio told reporters during the United Nations General Assembly. He said Washington hoped Putin would accept because the gathering would give him an opportunity to speak with Trump and other world leaders.

Rubio stopped short of saying Putin had accepted the invitation or that a bilateral meeting was being arranged. Asked directly whether the United States wanted another Trump–Putin summit, he replied: “That hasn’t been discussed.”

If Putin attended and there was a purpose for a meeting, Rubio said, the two presidents could meet. Otherwise, the G20 would still offer an opportunity for them to speak. He said the administration would remain open to engagement with Moscow as it sought an end to the war in Ukraine.

Rubio said Trump was willing to meet leaders with whom he disagreed. Such talks required preparation if they were to produce a result, he added. His preference, he said, would be a meeting that had an outcome rather than one held simply because the leaders were in the same place.

The two presidents have also spoken by telephone since Trump took office, Rubio said. He estimated they had spoken at least a dozen times, while making clear he did not have an exact count.

Rubio’s remarks came as US officials continued conversations about the Russia–Ukraine war. He said both sides had expressed interest in a limited ceasefire involving grain and energy, though reaching one would be difficult.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had discussed the idea with US officials, Rubio said. It had also featured in a meeting involving Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow. Washington would be willing to help bring about an arrangement if it could play a constructive role.

A limited ceasefire would not end the war, Rubio said, but could relieve some of its wider effects. He suggested it might provide a starting point for a broader agreement. “That war is going to end, I think everyone acknowledges, with a negotiated agreement,” he said.

Energy strikes pose a particular obstacle. Rubio said Ukraine was hitting Russian oil and gas facilities, which generate revenue for Moscow. Russia, he said, was targeting Ukraine’s electricity grid as winter approached. Both sides therefore regarded energy as part of their war aims.

The G20 brings together major economies, including the United States, Russia, India and China. Its leaders’ meetings provide opportunities for discussions alongside the formal programme.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The war has affected energy and food markets, giving efforts to limit strikes on those sectors significance beyond the two countries.

IANS