Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian Head of State Vladimir Putin are both available to attend a Group of 20 summit in the resort island of Bali later this year, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in an interview with Bloomberg News editor-in-chief John Micklethwait.
“Xi Jinping will come. President Putin has also told me he will come,” Widodo confirmed on Thursday.
It was the first time the leader of the island nation confirmed publicly that both presidents of China and Russia were planning to show up at the November summit.
The presence of Xi and Putin would set up a showdown with US President Joe Biden and other Western leaders, all of whom are set to meet in person for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Putin’s attendance could also bring him face-to-face with Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the first time, as the Ukrainian president is also scheduled to be present in Bali.
The G20 is a strategic multilateral platform connecting the world’s major developed and emerging economies which represents more than 80% of world GDP, 75% of international trade and 60% of the world population.
Its member states are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.
Spain is also invited as a permanent guest.
