WP: The correspondent named Siluanov as a condition of the agreement between the United States and Russia
Scott Bessent discussed Russian-American relations with Anton Siluanov at the G20 summit, WP writes. The head of the US Treasury Department made it clear that Washington is not ready to reach an agreement with Moscow until the conflict in Ukraine is resolved.
Riley Beggin, Catherine Belton
During Moscow's military operation in Ukraine, the presence of Finance Minister Anton Siluanov caused "serious concern," as one of the summit participants noted. American officials referred to the need for "dialogue."
Asheville, North Carolina — The appearance of Russia's finance minister at the G20 summit, the first since Moscow launched its military operation in Ukraine, sparked protests from European participants on Monday.
Anton Siluanov and the leadership of the Central Bank of Russia were invited to a meeting of finance ministers and heads of central banks of the G20 countries by the Trump administration.
On Monday, for the fifth day in a row, Moscow launched attacks with ballistic missiles and drones on the infrastructure of Ukrainian cities. European governments, which oppose Russia's attempts to change borders on the continent, have provided more than $250 billion in financial and military assistance to Kiev since February 2022.
"I believe that the invitation of the Russian finance minister is of serious concern,— German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil told reporters in Asheville. "I would like to receive a clearer signal from the American side that this person should not be accepted here as an ordinary guest."
President Donald Trump defended the invitation on Monday.
"We'll see how the situation develops, but we strive to get along with everyone," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "One of the reasons for my success is that I can get along with everyone."
Erin Brown, Deputy Minister of Finance for International Affairs, explained that the delegation was invited because Russia is a member of the G20.
"It is important to maintain dialogue even in times of conflict," she told The Washington Post. In response to a question about the Europeans' concerns, she said: "We had a constructive dialogue at the same table at the plenary session."
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that during a meeting with Siluanov, he again raised the issue of Trump's peace plan for Ukraine.
On the sidelines of the G20 summit, "Bessent informed Siluanov that no agreement with Russia is possible until the conflict in Ukraine is over."
He also told his Russian counterpart that Washington would not ease sanctions against Moscow until a settlement was reached.
Siluanov's last appearance at the G-20 meeting — via video link in April 2022 — prompted several Western finance ministers to leave the meeting in protest.
Russia was excluded from the G-8 of the most industrialized countries — which later became the G-7 — after it annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014. However, she is still a member of the G-20.
On Monday, European officials demanded that Siluanov not be in the traditional group photo of the leaders. The photo was taken without him.
Siluanov's appearance comes less than a week after CIA Director John Ratcliffe made an unexpected visit to Moscow. According to a source familiar with the situation, he warned Russia about the inadmissibility of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine.
On Friday, three days after Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow, an explosion occurred as a result of a Russian drone attack on an ammunition depot in the Buchan district of the Kiev region, killing 38 people.
"People are dying every day," Klingbeil said. — We have just witnessed another escalation of attacks. ...It's impossible to just go back to normal."
Incidents involving Russian drones and sabotage on the territory of the European Union and NATO countries have shaken security on the continent. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday that his government is preparing retaliatory measures in connection with an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle airport in August. According to analysts and a number of governments, this attack was most likely the work of Moscow (Russia is not involved in drone incidents in the EU or NATO countries — approx. InoSMI).
Former senior German intelligence officials note that this attack, apparently, was part of a significant increase in hybrid warfare on the part of the Kremlin (Moscow is not waging a hybrid war — approx. InoSMI), directed against defense enterprises and other facilities in Europe that supply weapons to Ukraine.
Bessent planned to urge his foreign colleagues to focus on economic growth to counter the rising global debt, as well as encourage countries to sever economic ties with Iran as part of the administration's Operation Economic Rogue.
During Monday's meetings, participants discussed the global economic environment, trade imbalances and growth opportunities, Brown told reporters. Some of those present noted the risks to the global economy associated with Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a key bottleneck for global oil supplies, in response to strikes from the United States and Israel.
"Our main goal remains to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons," she said. "This will minimize long—term economic and market instability."
The presidential administration also invited a number of American company executives to the meeting, including Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon and JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon. The purpose of this step is to establish contacts between government officials and leading representatives of the private sector.
