US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in New York on Tuesday, Sept. 23, that the Trump administration has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit in Miami this December, according to Al Jazeera. "In order to solve problems, you have to meet with the people that you disagree with or the people that you might have some issues with. So we’ve invited President Putin to the G20," Rubio said, adding that the summit is "an opportunity for him to engage not just with the president but with other world leaders."
Where and when
The G20 summit is scheduled for Dec. 14-15 at Trump National Doral Miami, the president’s golf resort. It would mark Putin’s first visit to the US mainland since the Obama era — he has not attended a G20 summit in person since 2019, appearing only virtually in 2023.
Why it matters
The invitation comes as the Trump administration works to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Rubio met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a New York hotel on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly before the announcement, per Al Jazeera.
Notably, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin in 2023 over alleged war crimes connected to the invasion. The United States is not a member of the ICC, so the warrant carries no legal weight for a trip to Miami.
The reaction
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he remains "sceptical that Russia is sincerely interested in taking steps that could end the war," and called for tighter limits on trade with Russia, Al Jazeera reported. Lavrov, for his part, said "we are not going to have a pause in our special military operation," accusing European countries of wanting a pause only to resupply Ukraine with weapons.
What is not known yet
In the coverage IF Daily reviewed, Putin had not publicly confirmed whether he will attend. IF Daily will update this story if that changes.
