Indonesia believes that a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky at the Group of Twenty (G20) summit would help "break the ice" in relations between the two countries, Indonesian Ambassador to Russia Jose Tavares told TASS.
According to the diplomat, Indonesia hopes that Putin and Zelensky will attend the summit in person rather than virtually. "A face-to-face meeting is always an advantage. We will facilitate that the platform for the meeting is provided. If there is the political will on both sides to meet, even if there is no expectation of any substantive achievements, if it is just about meeting and cracking the ice right now, meeting in the same room, shaking hands, even without smiling, that is already a great achievement," the ambassador said.
According to Tavares, Indonesia has not received confirmation of personal attendance from the parties so far. "But we have heard from some of Zelensky's interviews in the past that he has mentioned that he might not attend the summit in person, but only connect online with a speech. We'll see. We still have a few weeks," he added.
On October 14, Putin said that the issue of his trip to the G20 summit in Indonesia has not yet been finally decided, but the Russian side will participate in this forum. It is to be held on the Indonesian island of Bali on November 15-16.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: kemlu.go.id
Based on materials from TASS