Russia's finance minister returns to G20 table in Bangkok at U.S. invitation

Russia's finance minister, Anton Siluanov, attended a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors in Bangkok on Thursday, his second in-person appearance at the group since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, according to a seating plan seen by CNBC. Bank of Russia Deputy Governor Elizaveta Danilova was also listed as a delegate, and a person familiar with the matter said Siluanov was in the room.

The talks were held on the sidelines of the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Thailand. The layout document placed the Russian delegates between attendees from South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.

Europe pushes back

German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil was also listed as an attendee. At the previous G20 finance meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, in August, he told Siluanov that Moscow must end the war and declined to pose for a group photo with him. The traditional group photo was ultimately taken without the Russian delegation after European officials protested.

Klingbeil has opposed U.S. efforts to bring Russia back onto the international stage. After Thursday's meeting he said there would be "no pretending that Russia is now returning as a normal member of the G20 and simply taking its seat at the table again," adding that this applied to him and to other Europeans.

Diesel sanctions and Ukraine

The United States, which took over the G20 presidency this year, welcomed Russia's finance minister back to the finance talks after years of isolation over the invasion of Ukraine. The Trump administration also introduced a deal to temporarily lift sanctions on Russian diesel imports until April, drawing criticism from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European allies. Dombrovskis told CNBC on Wednesday that "now it's not a time to ease sanctions on Russia."

In a statement after Thursday's meetings, Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers said Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on commercial vessels "must end." Those impacts, he said, are exacerbated by Russia's unprovoked and unjustifiable war in Ukraine, and Australia calls for Russia to end the war and respect Ukraine's sovereignty.

No joint communique

The finance chiefs ended the meeting without a joint communique, underscoring persistent divisions among members over the Middle East conflict, trade imbalances and Russia's war with Ukraine. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who would normally chair the talks, skipped the meetings to stay in Washington.

The earlier Asheville meeting also ended without a communique after China objected to language on several issues, including efforts to rectify excessive global trade surpluses. The U.S. instead issued a chair's statement backed by every member present except China, with Bessent calling China "the dissenter."

The Bangkok meeting could have helped lay the groundwork for better coordination on challenges including energy problems stemming from the Middle East conflict and concerns about record public debt in advanced economies. Leaders are expected to convene at the next G20 summit in Miami in December.

Source: CNBC.