JOHANNESBURG — Following a speech by Russia’s leading diplomat at a tense G20 meeting in South Africa on Thursday, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy stated that he detected no desire for peace from Russia regarding the conflict in Ukraine.

Lammy’s comments to reporters came after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov addressed senior diplomats in a private session at the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg.

“I must say that after listening to the Russians and Mr. Lavrov in the chamber this afternoon, I don’t believe there’s a genuine desire to achieve peace,” Lammy stated.

Lammy noted that Lavrov left the room when it was his turn to speak. The details of Lavrov’s speech have not been disclosed.

This two-day G20 gathering follows closely on the heels of significant bilateral discussions between the U.S. and Russia concerning the resolution of the war in Ukraine. These discussions excluded Washington’s European allies and Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump has further complicated the West’s stance by criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and falsely attributing the full-scale invasion to Ukraine. The war is approaching its third anniversary next week.

“Currently, we’ve essentially had discussions about future discussions,” Lammy said. “We are nowhere near a negotiated settlement.”

In his own address, which was released by the U.K. Foreign Office, Lammy denounced Russia for what he described as “Tsarist imperialism.”

“Mature nations learn from their past colonial errors and wars, and Europeans have learned a great deal over the centuries,” Lammy stated, according to the U.K. Foreign Office transcript. “But I regret to say that Russia appears to have learned nothing.”

“I had hoped to hear some empathy for the innocent victims of the aggression and a readiness to pursue a lasting peace. Instead, I heard imperialistic logic disguised as realpolitik, and I urge you all not to be surprised or deceived.”

Lammy dismissed Lavrov’s speech as “the Russian gentleman’s tired fabrications.”

Tensions at the meeting were further highlighted by the unexplained cancellation of a photo opportunity for the foreign ministers.

The United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the European Union have all affirmed their continued support for Ukraine and were expected to reiterate this commitment at the G20 meeting.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who recently led talks with Lavrov in Saudi Arabia, was notably absent. Rubio boycotted the event due to U.S. tensions with South Africa over certain policies that the Trump administration has deemed anti-American. The U.S. was represented by Dana Brown, its acting ambassador to South Africa.

The G20 consists of 19 of the world’s leading economies, the European Union, and the African Union. Other attendees at the meeting in South Africa included EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who reiterated France’s condemnation of Russia in an op-ed published by several media outlets.

The Russian Foreign Ministry released details of a bilateral meeting between Lavrov and China’s Wang. According to the ministry, Lavrov stated that Russia’s relations with China “have become and remain an increasingly significant factor in stabilizing the international situation and preventing it from sliding into total confrontation.”

The G20 aims to unite developed and developing countries to promote global cooperation. However, the group often struggles to achieve consensus due to the differing interests of the U.S., Europe, Russia, and China. Cooperation has been further strained by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

South Africa holds the G20’s rotating presidency this year, and President Cyril Ramaphosa stated in his opening speech that the meeting was an opportunity for the G20 “to engage in serious dialogue” against a backdrop of geopolitical tensions, war, climate change, pandemics, and energy and food insecurity.

“There is a lack of consensus among major powers, including in the G20, on how to respond to these issues,” Ramaphosa noted.

Rubio’s decision to boycott the meeting and his intention to also skip the main G20 summit in South Africa in November threaten to further weaken the G20’s effectiveness.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also announced that he would not attend a G20 finance ministers meeting in South Africa next week due to commitments in Washington, a move widely interpreted as another sign of Trump’s disinterest in international collaboration in favor of his “America First” policy.

—Imray reported from Cape Town, South Africa.

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