Lula cuts G20 discussion short on Ukraine, irking Europeans

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during the G20 summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 18, 2024. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - European delegates at the G20 summit in Brazil were unhappy with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's decision to end talks and issue the group's final statement a day early to curtail prickly discussion on the war in Ukraine, sources said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday he regretted that the G20 communique did not underscore Russia's responsibility in starting the Ukraine war, particularly on the 1,000th day of its full-scale invasion.