Kallas: Putin’s G20 invitation would “normalize” war crimes

The European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, warned on Saturday, October 31, that a possible appearance by Vladimir Putin at the G20 leaders’ summit in Florida in December risks “normalizing Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine.”

She said this to Bloomberg TV, as reported by Politico Europe.

“To normalize Russia’s return to these international platforms is to normalize the war crimes that are committed every day,” Kallas said.

According to Bloomberg, she noted that Putin’s participation would make Russia’s return to international forums routine while the war continues.

President Donald Trump invited Russian President Putin to the summit, which is scheduled for December at Trump’s Doral golf resort in Miami. In addition, as the newspaper Türkiye Today reported, he eased some sanctions on Moscow. Whether Putin has confirmed his trip is not yet known. According to Politico Europe, he last personally took part in a G20 meeting in 2019 — three years before the full-scale “Russian invasion” of Ukraine.

Kallas made this statement following a two-day meeting of G20 foreign ministers in Atlanta, hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. There she accused Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov of putting forward “a lot of lies and false narratives,” Arab News reports, citing AFP.

The traditional group photo was canceled: some European officials refused to stand next to Lavrov. Kallas said: “We don’t want to stand next to him,” since he is under international sanctions. At the same time, she added that his presence allowed Europeans to “push back on these lies immediately.”

She also disputed Moscow’s claim of readiness for negotiations. According to Kallas, July, August and September were the deadliest months for civilians in Ukraine.

“Let them prove with deeds that they are ready to negotiate, but they clearly, absolutely clearly are not ready,” she said.

Kallas called the US approval of the supply of 500 Patriot interceptor missiles to Ukraine a “very positive step” and urged allies to tighten sanctions against Russia. The State Department approved the sale on Friday, October 30. The estimated cost of the PAC-3 missiles is about €1.9 billion.

According to Reuters, Ukraine will pay for them through contributions from Canada, Germany and Norway, as well as its own funds secured by an EU loan. The main contractor is Lockheed Martin, and no US government funds are involved. The delivery timeframe is 3–5 years.

Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the decision but warned that deliveries “may only begin in a few years.” Two sources familiar with the decision told Reuters that the missiles have not yet been produced and that arrivals are not expected until a couple of years after the start of the 2030s.

Kallas also rejected reports of Pentagon calls for NATO countries, including the Baltic states bordering Russia, to soften their criticism of the Kremlin.

“The question is, will the threat disappear if we don’t talk about it? I think it won’t disappear,” she said.