US, Asean summit dodges Russia condemnation in cautious statement
- Participating nations issued a statement calling for the ‘immediate cessation of hostilities’ in Ukraine but did not use words such as ‘Russia,’ ‘war’ or ‘invasion’
- White House is hosting Asean summit for first time in 55-years of the alliance; US believes the meeting can help combat China’s growing influence in the region
A summit with Southeast Asian leaders organised and hosted by President Joe Biden concluded at the White House on Friday with a group statement that omitted any condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The nations participating in the summit, called the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or Asean, issued a statement calling for the “immediate cessation of hostilities” in Ukraine. The countries said they “reaffirm our respect for sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity.”
But the statement did not use the words “Russia,” “war” or “invasion.” The Kremlin refuses to describe its invasion of Ukraine as a war, instead calling it a “special military operation.” Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have been killed, according to estimates by Ukrainian, US and European officials, and Ukrainian cities have suffered widespread destruction from air strikes as well as artillery and missile barrages.
Biden has sought to rally US allies in support of Ukraine’s defence, and has had success in Europe, where most Nato countries have supplied weaponry and other material to Kyiv’s forces.
But Asean’s membership includes nations that are warier of directly criticising Russia. Indonesia, which will host the Group of 20 summit later this year, has refused to exclude Vladimir Putin from the gathering and is instead extending invitations to both the Russian leader and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Much of the Asean summit was conducted behind closed doors, so it wasn’t clear to what extent Ukraine portion of the joint statement was debated.