A month has passed since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. More than 3.6 million people have fled the country and nearly 1,000 civilians have been killed, according to the United Nations, as intense fighting continues to shred city landscapes and casualties on both sides mount.
The United States and its European allies have responded with military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine, along with unprecedented economic sanctions on Russia and its oligarchs. U.S. officials said Thursday that the Russian economy has shrunk in half since the start of the war. Now, U.S. President Joe Biden is pushing to inflict further economic pain by calling for Russia to be booted from the G-20 and its November heads of state summit in Indonesia.
But what exactly is the G-20? Here’s what you need to know.
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What is the G-20?
The Group of 20 or the G-20 is a body of the world’s largest economies that formed in 1999 in response to the financial crisis in Asia two years prior.
The group initially included state finance ministers and heads of central banks who came together to discuss the global economy but eventually evolved to include heads of state.
G-20 began holding its famed annual summit for heads of state in 2008.
What countries are in the G-20?
The G-20 is made up of 19 member countries and the European Union. Collectively, G-20 members account for 60% of the world’s population, 80% of global GDP and 75% of global exports.
The members are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. Spain is invited to the annual summit as a permanent guest.
When is the G-20 2022 summit?
This year’s G-20 heads of state summit will be held on Nov. 15 and 16 in Bali, Indonesia. It will focus on global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the digitalization of the global economy and the transition to sustainable energy. Last year’s summit was held in Italy and was the first in-person summit since the pandemic began.
Why does Biden want to boot Russia from G-20?
Biden said Russia should be kicked out of the group in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine.
The move would also further isolate the Kremlin and diminish Russia’s influence over the world’s economy. The U.S. does not have sole power to remove Russia from the group; its members would have to decide.
“If Indonesia and others do not agree, then we should, in my view, ask to have Ukraine be able to attend the meetings,” Biden said in a news conference Thursday at the NATO headquarters in Belgium.
A Russian ambassador said Putin plans to attend the summit in Indonesia, and China, a G-20 member, has come out against calls to revoke Russia’s membership.
