Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley knocked President Biden over the Group of 20 (G20) summit’s statement on Ukraine, calling it a “win” for Russia and China.
When asked on CNN’s “State of The Union” about the closing statement of this year’s G20 summit, which stopped short of condemning Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, Haley said, “It was a win for Russia and China. They’re celebrating today.”
“I mean, what we should have had was, Biden should have really pushed hard to acknowledge what he acknowledged a year ago, that Russia invaded a pro-American, freedom-loving country,” Haley continued. “And that’s a fact, and to deny a fact a year later is giving a win to Russia. And China is gloating, because they’re looking at Taiwan as this is happening, and it’s a shame.”
The G20 summit statement drew criticism for not criticizing Russia for its war with Ukraine, but instead including a generic request for nations to respect each other’s borders. The statement largely contrasted with last year’s G20 summit statement, which strongly condemned Russia for the war.
Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said this year’s statement is “nothing to be proud of.”
“Ukraine is grateful to the partners who tried to include strong wordings in the text,” Nikolenko said in a Facebook post. “At the same time, in terms of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the Group of 20 has nothing to be proud of. It is obvious that participation of the Ukrainian side would allow the participants to better understand
Nikolenko’s remarks were accompanied by a screenshot of the statement, which was edited to change certain wording to say the war is “against” Ukraine rather than “in” the country and to make the statement’s call for “all states” to act in accordance with the United Nations charter instead single out Russia.
Razom We Stand, a Ukrainian advocacy group focused on anti-Russian energy policy, said the statement is “cowardly” and “completely fails to address the responsibility the G20 should have to stop Russia and its geopolitical weapons.”
Haley, a former United Nations ambassador, has remained vocal over U.S. support to Ukraine during her presidential run. During last month’s GOP debate, Haley accused Republican rival Vivek Ramaswamy of choosing Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine after he was the only candidate to say he would stop U.S. funding to Ukraine if elected president.
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