Russia Hawks Rage With Lavrov In Atlanta For G20 Meeting

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is in Atlanta on Friday for the G20 meeting of Foreign Ministers, after a flight that reportely took 20 hours, given his plane had to avoid traversing airspace of unfriendly countries which have sanctions on Russia, including its aviation.

The G20 Atlanta meeting is set to run through Saturday, in anticipation of the later final G20 leaders' summit in Miami, scheduled for December 14-15.

President Putin has reportedly been issued an invitation to attend the Miami G20 by the Trump White House, but the Kremlin has not yet indicated whether he will actually be there.

Of course, the European delegations are strongly objecting to Lavrov's presence, and already Friday there are reports the traditional opening 'family photo' has been scrapped.

According to The Associated Press:

The cancellation of the photograph, a traditional opening event at such a diplomatic gathering, underscored the deep rifts in the G20 over global crises that threaten international security and trade.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio decided to cancel the photo after determining that the controversy would be a distraction, according to two U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. The meeting in Atlanta, which will otherwise go ahead as planned, is meant to set the stage for a G20 leaders’ summit hosted by President Donald Trump at his Miami golf club in December.

The top Rusisan diplomat was forced to avoid European airspace altogether, in a plane ride which reached nearly a full day...

Lavrov was later Friday seen taking part in the G20 ministers' first plennary session.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski commented, "There are uncomfortable moments in diplomacy and this will be one of them."

Rubio opener...

Amid the usual gnashing off teeth among the European delegations, some Congressional anti-Russian hawks have also been sounding off:

At home, Republicans too are outraged by the decision to invite Lavrov. Representative Don Bacon condemned the visit on X, saying, "Lavrov should not be allowed in the country."

"As long as Putin is waging war against Ukraine and bombing cities, Russian leaders should not be welcomed in any of these forums. They lead a pariah state," Bacon posted on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Trump White House seeks to put grown ups in the room, perhaps realizing that no matter how many times Washington officials label Russia a 'pariah' - such vapid name calling is not going to solve the Ukraine crisis.