G20 foreign ministers scrap 'family photo' as Lavrov crashes party

Organizers of the G20 foreign ministers’ summit in Atlanta canceled the traditional ceremonial group photo following objections from several diplomats regarding Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's presence. The Hill reported that top diplomats objected to being photographed with the Russian official, while Ajel English noted that European diplomats specifically raised objections to appearing with Lavrov.

Meduza (English) reported that an unnamed official stated the decision to skip the photo was intended to avoid a diplomatic incident and maintain focus on the summit's agenda. Meduza (English) also noted that a similar situation occurred at a G20 finance ministers' summit in early September, where participants refused to pose with Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, resulting in photos being taken without him.

The foreign ministers' meeting is being held in Atlanta from October 30 to 31. This summit precedes the G20 leaders' summit scheduled for mid-December in Miami.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Hill, Ajel English, Meduza (English) — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.