Biden, Putin and Xi? A Good G-20 Turnout, But Not Enough
The Russian and Chinese leaders will turn up in Bali in November, the Indonesian president says, alongside their US counterpart and others. Then what?
Heavy hitters.
Photographer: Alexie Druzhinin/AFP/Getty Images
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has long put domestic concerns ahead of diplomacy. He’s now about to host one of the most significant geopolitical gatherings in years. On Thursday, he told Bloomberg News that Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping plan to attend the Group of 20 summit. For the image-conscious Jokowi, as he is known, that counts as a win — the two leaders have hardly traveled since early 2020, and bringing together US president Joe Biden and the world’s two leading autocrats in Bali could help tackle compounding global security, energy and climate crises.
But the hard work ahead of November’s summit is only just beginning.