Biden Says Russia Should Be Removed From G20

U.S. President Joe Biden said he thinks Russia should be removed from the Group of Twenty (G20) major economies and the topic was raised during his meetings with world leaders in Brussels earlier on Thursday.

When asked if Russia should be removed from the group “My answer is yes, depends on the G20,”

He also said, ‘We would respond,’ if Putin chooses to use chemical weapons.

Biden also said if countries such as Indonesia and others do not agree with removing Russia, then in his view, Ukraine should be allowed to attend the meetings.

Biden landed in Brussels in hopes of sending a message to the Kremlin. Many are calling it a show by the US and NATO that, in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Western alliance is stronger than it has ever been, even though their response to the situation so far, has fallen short of Ukraine’s expectations.

The US President was said to have a packed agenda for his trip to the Belgian capital: From an emergency NATO summit to a meeting of the G7, to then conclude by joining his EU counterparts at the European Council building. One can almost say that his meetings are business as usual for the EU and could possibly, not be centered so much on providing real help for Ukraine.

The extraordinary coincidence of the three high-level encounters has been made to look like a response to reports of a deteriorating situation inside Ukraine, where the Russian advance has allegedly been stalled but the media is saying the death toll still continues to mount and cities are still being shelled and bombed.

Biden has peddled that Putin might be considering resorting to biological and chemical weapons to speed up the military campaign, painting a scenario that would no doubt open a dangerous and unpredictable chapter in the month-long war.

The EU is already working on a new “massive” set of sanctions if these weapons, which are banned under international law, are eventually used, an EU official said speaking on condition of anonymity.

Biden’s visit is meant to strengthen the US response on “three critical fronts,” according to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan: to equip Ukraine militarily, impose more costs on Russia and reinforce the Western alliance.

“We are prepared and committed to this for as long as it takes,” Sullivan said during a press briefing.

The White House has put the bloc in a tight spot after introducing a total ban on imports of Russian fossil fuels, the Kremlin’s most profitable sector. Earlier this week, EU foreign ministers failed to reach an agreement over a similar ban on oil products due to disagreements between member states.

It remains to be seen if Biden will bring up the sensitive subject, which has split member states in pro-energy ban, anti-ban and somewhat-in-between teams.

“It will be good for Biden to see those different views for himself,” said the EU official.

When Biden enters the European Council premises on Thursday afternoon, he will become the first US president to participate physically in an EU summit.

Fellow G7 leaders — Canada’s PM Justin Trudeau, UK’s PM Boris Johnson and Japan’s PM Fumio Kishida — have not received an invitation to join, despite also flying to Brussels to attend the G7 meeting.

China, a close partner with Russia but which has close economic ties with the US and the EU, has chosen a deliberately ambiguous position, calling for “maximum restraint” while condemning the hard-hitting Western sanctions. US officials have said Beijing might be willing to provide Moscow with financial and military assistance, a claim that China vehemently denied.