Janet Yellen, the US Treasury Secretary, said she and other finance ministers left a closed-door G20 meeting with Russia on Wednesday because “it simply cannot be business as usual for Russia in terms of its participation in our global forums,” where nations convene to solve common concerns.
During a news conference with reporters on Thursday, Yellen addressed the walkout. According to a source familiar with the discussion, the treasury secretary left along with European and other Western officials who were in attendance.
“I believe that participation in those forums necessitates countries’ willingness to uphold the basic principles and values that underpin international cooperation,” says the author “Yellen stated this on Thursday. “When the Russian finance minister began to speak, I and others decided to leave to make it obvious that Russia’s actions… is so repugnant to international norms that we are unwilling to allow Russia to participate or listen to what they have to say.”
Prior to the summit, US authorities stated that Yellen would not attend certain sessions of the event, including those involving Russia.
As invited guests, Ukrainian officials spoke in the meeting, but left with Yellen and other officials when Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov began speaking digitally.
