Chinese president Xi Jinping
(Picture: Getty Images)Chinese President Xi Jinping has joined Western leaders in condemning Russia over the war in Ukraine at the G20 summit.
World leaders including Xi called for “respect for the territorial integrity” of Ukraine during the high-profile meeting in Indonesia on Tuesday.
“Together with President Xi Jinping, we call for respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine," Emmanuel Macron, the French President, tweeted after a meeting with the Chinese leader.
“The consequences of this conflict go beyond European borders: it is through close coordination between France and China that we will overcome them.”
Mr Macron added that France and China were determined to “put an end to the escalation and deal with the consequences of the war in Ukraine”.
President Xi Jinping and I call for respect for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. The consequences of this conflict stretch beyond Europe’s frontiers, and it is through close coordination between France and China that they will be overcome.
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) November 15, 2022
It came as British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said “countries should not invade their neighbours” as he condemned the Russian invasion.
Facing Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the plenary hall, Mr Sunak called on Moscow to “get out of Ukraine and end this barbaric war” as he blamed the conflict for worsening global economic challenges.
Mr Lavrov “was left in no doubt of the strength of feeling by a number of G20 countries” during the first summit session, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman later told reporters in Bali.
He said: “It wouldn’t be right for me to speak on behalf of other world leaders but there was certainly very strong condemnation from a number of quarters.
“I think that the Prime Minister, as you saw it, was very forthright and frank in his assessment of the problems that we are currently seeing.”
He said he is “confident that there is a growing number of countries who oppose” Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
The two-day gathering of leaders of the world’s major economies was opened by Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who said the world would struggle to move forward “if the war does not end”.
