By Burc Eruygur
ISTANBUL (AA) – Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend next week’s G-20 summit on the Indonesian island of Bali, the Kremlin announced Thursday.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will represent Moscow instead, said spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Peskov added that Putin's possible participation in the G-20 is “being worked out,” perhaps through a videoconference format.
His physical absence from the summit could prevent awkward moments with leaders of Western countries, who have denounced Putin for launching the war on Ukraine this February.
On Monday, Peskov also said Putin does not plan to go to this weekend’s East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Separately, the Kremlin said that last week Putin had a phone conversation with his Indonesian counterpart Joko Widodo about the G-20 summit among other matters, though no further details were given.
The G-20 summit will take place in Bali next Tuesday and Wednesday, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan among the world leaders set to attend.