Note: this is a machine translation from the original Russian text
The collective West has once again drowned in impotent anger.
On the Indonesian island of Bali, where the meeting of the G20 foreign ministers took place, there was a Zugzwang (German: Zugzwang, coercion to move. – Auth.). Initially, this term was used in checkers and chess to denote a situation when any move of a player leads to a deterioration of his position. But then he moved into politics.
So, the leaders of the "Big Seven" (G7), having inhaled on the eve of the Alpine air at their party in the Bavarian castle of Elmau, set an algorithm for total international counteraction to Russia on all world platforms. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken saluted and decided to organize a conspiracy with his comrades against the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Sergey Lavrov at the Indonesian Foreign Ministry. And in a very childish way - we go, they say, to another sandbox.
And this, by the way, instead of discussing the most important international topics – energy, food and financial security on the verge of collapse, the inexorably impending recession, the Ukrainian crisis. And here, without Russia, of course, you will not get far.
As a result of the "efforts" of the collective West in relation to Moscow, there was a split between the members of the "twenty": the camp of conspirators – the G7 countries plus Australia, South Korea and the EU represented by its foreign minister Josep Borrel (10 participants in total), and the camp of dissenters – the BRICS+ countries, Argentina and Saudi Arabia (also 10). Neither here nor there. The cart got stuck...
Already at the very beginning of the event, on July 7, the G7 representatives did not come to the welcome dinner together, thereby demonstrating that they did not want to sit at the same table with Lavrov. By the way, the envoy of South Korea still checked in at the dinner and even talked on his own initiative with Sergey Viktorovich about something "on his feet". In the diplomatic lexicon there is such a term – "on your feet." This is when not "at the table". So - 9.5 to 10.5 in our favor!
And when the meeting ended, the "others" refused to take pictures together, again because of their unwillingness to perpetuate themselves on a card with the Russian minister. The organizers had to exclude the traditional photo from the agenda altogether. However, by this time the Russian delegation had already left the forum. The excuse is weighty: there are a lot of things to do at home, they say.
At the same time, representatives of the "conspirators' camp" proudly declared that "Lavrov literally flew out of the summit."
The official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, retorted that Secretary Blinken was making up tall tales, talking about the isolation of the Russian Foreign Minister in Bali.
"It was you, Mr. Blinken, who drove yourself into self-isolation by manking a number of forum events, where the majority did not even remember about you. And now, in order to justify your own failure, you compose tall tales. We were told how you personally ask everyone to "isolate" Russia. And everyone you ask is laughing at your back, knowing that the current administration is doomed to an inglorious end," Zakharova wrote in her Telegram channel.
In fact, Lavrov, as confirmed by Western sources, held about 10 meetings with his colleagues on the sidelines of the meeting. It is known for certain about his business contacts with the foreign Ministers of China, Turkey, India, Brazil, Argentina and Indonesia. Weighty?
I would also like to note that not a single Western minister boycotted the speech of our Foreign Minister at the summit. Even the notorious Blinken was present in the hall. Lavrov, by the way, nobly refused the "mirror boycott" and also decided not to ignore the speeches of colleagues from the "conspirators' camp". "It was interesting for me to hear what the West is doing now," the minister admitted. Perhaps the only one he didn't listen to was the German Annalena Berbock. Not because he does not respect women and her in particular, but because the plane was already waiting for him "in pairs".
But let's return to Lavrov's speech at the forum. In particular, he said: "Classical diplomacy is giving way to methods of blackmail and pressure on independent states." And he called for remembering the principles of solidarity laid down in the foundation of the G20, created in 2008 as a joint response to the global financial crisis.
Later, at a bilateral meeting with his Brazilian counterpart Carlos Franca, our Minister stressed that he appreciates the position of most countries in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. "No matter what anyone thinks about any of us, we should not undermine multilateral formats," he said.
Detail: there are really a lot of benefits from such contacts. The representative of the States, for example, "on the sidelines" of the G20, on his own initiative, held talks with Chinese Minister Wang Yi. Which is important in the context of growing tensions in bilateral relations. And the Chinese Foreign Minister – with a colleague from Australia. For the first time in three years, what can be considered a big breakthrough in relations between Beijing and Canberra.
Actually, it's not a sin to remind that the G20 ministers gathered in Bali not to arrange irrelevant showdowns (we are talking about some), but to prepare for the G20 summit meeting to be held in Indonesia in November.
On July 6, Moscow previously notified the organizers of President Vladimir Putin's intention to take part in the summit. However, the Foreign Ministry stipulated that the format of his participation "is subject to clarification due to the epidemic situation in the region and the situation in the world." (Diplomats know how to circumvent sharp corners!).
In fact, there are several options for the presence (or still not presence) of the Kremlin leader at the upcoming November meeting. Let's analyze the most obvious ones.
The first. Ignore. Personally, I exclude him. The format of the "twenty" in the current conditions is important for Russia.
Second. The collective West continues to "inflate its cheeks" and, due to the possible arrival of the Russian leader, lowers the level of its representation. That is, not the first persons will sit, but G7 politicians with a lower rank. In fact, Putin should not be offended: he will have a sufficient number of worthy partners for negotiations. But the "conspirators" of the highest rank will lose the opportunity to meet face to face with the leaders of the same China, India, the leading countries of South America. That will obviously go to them "in the negative".
Third. Putin may decide to participate in the event at a remote location, which he successfully practices both on the domestic political floor and at the international level. Example: a recent video conference with BRICS leaders. This option is likely, especially after demarches at the last SMID, but personal communication ("eye to eye") still preferable.
Fourth. All the powerful of this world come to the "ball" (or a gala dinner). That's where it will be necessary to observe how the cards will eventually fall. Will the elderly Biden and sporty Scholz run away from Putin? In favor of this option is the fact that until November, read for five months!, "a lot of water will leak". We are talking about the same Russian special operation in Ukraine. Will the "war continue to the last Ukrainian" or will it be time to sit down at the negotiating table?
In any case, the Kremlin now has a more preferable position. Putin can choose and build his approach based on Russian interests. And the collective West will be drowning in impotent anger all this time.