US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Atlanta on 30 October.
The United States cancelled a planned official 'family photo' during the summit.
A US official said the photo was cancelled "after it became clear some of the delegations were unwilling to participate in a joint photo". Diplomats from Europe declined to stand for an official picture with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The United Kingdom was among the nations that declined to participate in the photograph, according to a diplomatic source.
"The UK has a longstanding policy not to have direct, bilateral engagement with Russian ministers since the invasion of Ukraine and we are not about to change that", said a British official. The US official stated that the decision to forgo the photo was made to keep the focus on substantive discussions rather than allowing a ceremonial opportunity to become a diplomatic distraction.
Ukraine was not invited to the meeting. President Trump waived some sanctions and agreed to a deal to import Russian diesel for the American market. Trump said his decision to suspend several Russian sanctions is an effort to keep Moscow at the negotiating table in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
President Zelensky described the deal as a gift to Putin that amounts to "an investment in a war that must be ended, not prolonged". Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia is willing to supply both the US and global markets with oil and petroleum products, despite introducing a ban on diesel exports earlier this year.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and currently controls approximately a fifth of Ukrainian territory.
