Australia warned not to exclude Putin

Daniel Flitton

Senior Correspondent

China, India and Brazil have joined Russia to warn Australia not go it alone and exclude president Vladimir Putin from a summit of world leaders in Brisbane later this year.

The intervention will heighten fears among Australian officials the Brisbane summit could split into rival camps and effectively derail the talks.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has not ruled out preventing Mr Putin from attending the G20 meeting that Australia will host in November as punishment for Russia's annexation of Crimea.

But foreign ministers from China, India and Brazil - along with Russia and South Africa, and known as the BRICS group - this week issued a statement warning of their "concern".

"The custodianship of the G20 belongs to all member states equally," said the statement, adding "no one member state can unilaterally determine its nature and character."

Already the G7 nations of the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and Canada have sought to isolate Russia over its conflict with Ukraine by cutting off Moscow's participation in what had been the G8.

Australia has imposed financial sanctions and travel bans on several unnamed Russians said to be "instrumental in the Russian threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine".

The Foreign Affairs department confirmed Russia has not been blocked from a meeting of key officials beginning Thursday at Uluru in the Northern Territory. The officials, known as the G20 sherpas, have the job to guide their respective leaders to the summit in Brisbane.

SATISH SHARMA - not just Rotigraphy.

Thursday 27 March 2014