Russia is becoming a “pariah state”, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said as he prepared to condemn Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Sunak planned to use the first session of the G20 summit on Tuesday to confront Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, along with the UK's allies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to send Mr Lavrov in his place, as he continues to suffer military setbacks and unanimous condemnation from western powers.
“It’s telling that Putin is not there," Mr Sunak said on his flight to Indonesia.
“Russia is becoming a pariah state and he’s not there to take responsibility for what he’s doing.
“I’m going to take the opportunity to unequivocally condemn the Russian state and Putin for their abhorrent and illegal war.
Ukraine war latest - in pictures
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Smoke rises on the outskirts of the city during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters -
Workers surround the Monument to the Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred with sandbags against damage from shelling in Mykolaiv. EPA -
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for talks before a meeting between the Russian president and the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, Russia. AFP -
People take water from a water pump in Kyiv. EPA -
A woman walks past a damaged building in the town of Nova Kakhovka. Reuters -
A woman outside her home, which was destroyed during battles at the start of the conflict, in Yahidne, Chernihiv. Getty Images -
People shelter inside a subway station during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters -
Firefighters at the site of a drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine. AP -
A woman walks past the site of a Russian missile strike in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv. Reuters -
Rescuer workers at a building destroyed in an attack in Mykolaiv. Reuters -
Parts of a drone lie on a street in Kyiv. Reuters -
A drone flies over the Ukrainian capital during an attack. AFP -
Ukrainian servicemen tow a captured Russian armoured vehicle in Rudneve village, Kharkiv. EPA -
A partially destroyed residential building in Saltivka, in Kharkiv. AP -
Ukrainian servicemen fire a captured Russian howitzer on a front line near Kupyansk city, Kharkiv. EPA -
Ukrainian servicemen near the recently retaken town of Lyman in Donetsk region. AFP -
An officer from a Ukrainian national police emergency demining team prepares to detonate collected anti-tank mines and explosives near Lyman, in the Donetsk region. AFP -
A boy playing on a destroyed Russian tank on display in Kyiv. AFP -
A young couple hiding underground during an air alert in Zaporizhzhia. AFP -
Ukrainian firefighters looking for survivors after a strike in Zaporizhzhia. AFP -
Workers fix a banner reading 'Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson - Russia!' to the State Historical Museum near Red Square in Moscow. AFP -
Residents try to cross a destroyed bridge in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine. AFP -
Alyona Kishinskaya helps to clean up a shop as it prepares to reopen in Balakiya, Ukraine, after a six-month Russian occupation. Getty Images -
Alla, 12, has a swinging time in Balakiya, Ukraine, as life goes on despite the war. Getty Images -
Ukrainian flags in the town square in Balakiya. Getty Images -
A destroyed Russian command centre in Izium, Ukraine. Getty Images -
In what may be a final farewell, young Russian recruits - escorted by their wives - walk to a train station in Volgograd before being sent to war in Ukraine. AP -
Russian recruits board the train to Ukraine in Volgograd. AP -
Ukrainian soliders drive a tank at the recently retaken eastern side of the Oskil River in Kharkiv region, Ukraine. AFP -
Volunteers pass boxes of food aid on a destroyed bridge over the Oskil River. AFP -
Ukrainian soliders rest on an armoured personnel carrier. AFP -
A sign warns of landmines in Izyum, eastern Ukraine. AFP -
This crater was left after a missile strike in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. AFP
“I will do that in the hall, I will do that if I see him elsewhere and that’s the right thing to do.”
The G20 leaders’ summit is the first since the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, and the first held in the shadow of a major European war instigated by one of its members.
The gathering looks likely to be dominated by the fallout from the conflict, which has caused and exacerbated global economic woes, driving up food and energy prices worldwide.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to address the event online.
Ukraine capital Kyiv hit by kamikaze drones - in pictures
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Firefighters in action after a drone fired on buildings in Kyiv, Ukraine. AP -
A drone approaches for an attack in the Ukraine capital. AFP -
A police officer fires at a drone flying overhead. AFP -
Smoke rises from a building after a drone attack. AFP -
A Ukrainian serviceman takes cover as an air-raid siren sounds. Reuters -
Debris near the site of a drone attack. AFP -
Police stand guard as smoke rises from buildings. Reuters -
A drone in the sky seconds before it fired on buildings. AP -
Plumes of smoke rise after a Russian drone strike. Reuters
Asked if he would encourage Kyiv to enter peace talks, Mr Sunak said that was a question for the Ukrainians.
“It’s a bit unfair to say to the Ukrainians: ‘look you should be negotiating’ when your country and your civilian infrastructure is being relentlessly bombed, as it is currently.
“So our job is to continue to help the Ukrainians defend themselves, and put themselves in the strongest possible position, at a time of their choosing, to bring a negotiated settlement.
“But nothing that Russia is doing at the moment would suggest that they are committed or interested in that approach right now.”
Putin's inner circle – in pictures
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Head of Russia's SVR intelligence service Sergei Naryshkin has seen his status eroded by the strong resistance encountered in Ukraine, which he did not foresee. EPA -
Head of Russia's Roscosmos space agency Dmitry Rogozin has threatened to abandon a Nasa astronaut on the International Space Station. AFP -
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was one of the architects of Moscow's intervention in Syria. AFP -
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Russia's oil giant Rosneft chief Igor Sechin. He has been described as Mr Putin's right-hand man. AFP -
Secretary of Russia's Security Council Nikolai Patrushev attends a meeting in Moscow. He is said to have known Mr Putin for 50 years. AFP -
Sergei Ivanov, Russian special representative on questions of ecology and transport, is a close friend of Mr Putin. AFP -
Federal Security Service director Alexander Bortnikov is responsible for a huge network of agents in Russia. AFP -
At 58, president of the Duma Lower House of Parliament Vyacheslav Volodin is one of the younger members of the inner circle. He has been touted as a possible successor to Mr Putin. AFP
