UkrainianIts allies and Russia on Tuesday claimed responsibility for the dramatic escalation of the war in Europe that dominated the final day of talks at the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro.

The two-day meeting ended with the request of the President of Brazil Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva The world’s most powerful leaders need to save stalled UN climate talks in Azerbaijan, calling it a “matter of survival” for the planet.

Joe Biden, who attended his last summit as US president before handing over power to Donald Trump, known for his climate skeptics, also called for urgent action.

“History is watching us,” he insisted.

But Biden’s decision to abruptly reverse key US policy towards Ukraine in his final weeks in office has diverted attention from Brazil’s anti-poverty and anti-emissions G20 agenda.

On the eve of the meeting, Biden gave the green light for Kiev to use US missiles to strike deep into Russia for the first time, in an apparent response to Moscow’s recruitment. North Korean soldiers To fight in Ukraine.

Read moreGoodbye old world order? Last G20 Summit before Trump’s inauguration

‘Listen to logic’

The move prompted the Kremlin to announce it was relaxing its rules on the use of nuclear weapons and caused alarm among Kiev’s supporters in Washington, European capitals and elsewhere.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who was at the G20, announced that the USA and Russia were “on the verge of a direct military conflict”.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer criticized the “irresponsible rhetoric coming from Russia”, which was also expressed by the US National Security Council spokesman.

President of France Emmanuel Macron He said he asked his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to “use all his influence” to get Russian leader Vladimir Putin to “listen to reason”.

At the beginning of the new Trump era, Xi, who sees himself as a defender of the international order, held consecutive meetings with other leaders in Rio.

The Chinese leader, who was greeted with greater fanfare than lame duck Biden, emphasized each time that the world was facing a new period of “turbulence”.

China and Brazil announced a plan to bring Russia and Ukraine back to the negotiating table this summer but were rejected by Kiev because Moscow did not have to withdraw first.

The summit’s joint declaration made no mention of Russia’s aggression, saying only that leaders welcomed “all relevant and constructive initiatives that support a comprehensive, just and lasting peace” in Ukraine.

Read moreUN chief calls on G20 ‘leadership’ to save stalled COP29 climate talks

Taxing the ultra-rich

President Lula used his mandate to host the summit to rally support for a global campaign against hunger and to promote COP29 climate talks, which have stalled in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.

On Tuesday, Lula said, “We cannot leave the task of Baku to Belem,” referring to the Amazon city that will host the UN next year. climate speaking.

However, the G20’s statement on the issue did not meet the shot in the arm that the climate negotiators gathered in Azerbaijan wanted.

While leaders acknowledged the need for trillions of dollars in climate finance for poor countries, they did not explicitly mention the need to move away from fossil fuels.

Lula said next year’s conference would be the “last chance” to prevent “irreversible” damage caused by warming Earth.

Biden, who organized a farewell tour in South America to announce his climate legacy, told his G20 counterparts: “I demand that we keep the faith and keep going.”

“This is the greatest existential threat to humanity.”

But he missed the first group photo of the summit, a symbol of the aging leader’s disappearance from the global stage, and his absence went unnoticed by his colleagues.

Another photo featuring Biden was taken on Tuesday.

Lula, who handed over the G20 presidency to South Africa, the defender of the Global South, emerged victorious from two pet projects.

Growing up in poverty, the leftist captured the leaders of 80 countries, including the reluctant Argentine President. Javier MileiJoining an alliance to end world hunger.

And at his call, G20 members also agreed to cooperate to ensure the world’s billionaires pay more taxes; This is a key demand of anti-poverty campaigners.

(AFP)