BBC News 2 March 2023
Angry exchanges over Russia's war in Ukraine have dominated G20 talks, with hosts India saying the disagreements mean there will be no joint statement.
The US secretary of state said the meeting had been marred by Russia's "unprovoked and unjustified war".
India had wanted to focus on other issues affecting developing nations, but it said the differences over Ukraine "could not be reconciled".
"We tried, but the gap between the countries was too much," India's foreign minister S Jaishankar said.
The G20, which includes the world's 19 wealthiest nations plus the European Union, accounts for 85% of global economic output and two-thirds of its population.
The group's foreign ministers - including Russia's Sergei Lavrov, Antony Blinken of the US and China's Qin Gang - were meeting in Delhi under India's presidency. It was the first face-to-face meeting of the two top US and Russian diplomats since the war began, just over a year ago.
Mr Blinken met Mr Lavrov for about 10 minutes on the sidelines of the summit, and told him the West would stand by Ukraine "for as long as it takes", a senior state department official said. Mr Blinken also pressed Russia to rejoin the New Start nuclear arms control treaty that it recently withdrew from and abide by the terms.
Russian officials denied any negotiations had taken place. Earlier, Russia also accused the West of "burying" a deal to allow some Ukrainian grain exports - but the US countered by saying Moscow was hampering Ukrainian exports.
Meanwhile Russian officials said Moscow and Beijing had agreed to oppose what they called Western blackmail and threats - but this hasn't been confirmed by China.
"We speak about manners. Well, our Western counterparts have gotten really bad with these," Mr Lavrov said after Thursday's talks. "They are not thinking of diplomacy any more; they now only deal in blackmail and threatening everyone else."
Indian PM Narendra Modi had opened the session by speaking up for developing nations, saying those present had a responsibility to them.
"We are meeting at a time of deep global divisions," Mr Modi told the ministers gathered in Delhi, urging delegates to find common ground.
"After years of progress, we are at risk today of moving back on the sustainable development goals. Many developing countries are struggling with unsustainable debts while trying to ensure food and energy security," he said.
"They are also most affected by global warming caused by richer countries. This is why India's G20 presidency has tried to give a voice to the Global South."
It was a rare address by Mr Modi in English - a sign of how seriously he wanted his message to be taken. He made no direct reference to the war in Ukraine but acknowledged that discussions would be affected by geopolitical tensions.
India's slogan for the G20 is "One Earth, One Family, One Future". Mr Modi called on delegates to take it to heart and focus on issues that unite them.
Thursday's schedule included sessions on food security, development co-operation, terrorism and humanitarian assistance - a reflection of India's priorities while it holds the G20 presidency.
Before the talks a former Indian diplomat told the BBC India would have to "do something special" to make delegates overlook their differences on the war. Indian diplomats worked towards a consensus on less politically contentious issues.
Foreign Minister Jaishankar presented a chair's summary after Thursday's talks, meaning participants had been unable to reach a joint statement.
"There were issues and very frankly they were concerned with the Ukraine conflict. There were divergences," he said, noting the "polarised views of some countries, we were not able to bridge on this occasion."
Last week, G20 finance ministers failed to reach a consensus on a closing statement at their meeting in the city of Bangalore (Bengaluru), in the first ministerial meeting in the run-up to the leaders' summit later this year.
Strained relations between the US and China, which has refused to oppose Russia's invasion, were also expected to test India's ability to forge a consensus.
Experts say Delhi also has the delicate task of balancing its non-aligned policy on the war with pleas to other nations to find ways to work together.
India has resisted pressure and continued with its strategy of not directly criticising Russia, which is India's largest supplier of arms. It has regularly abstained from voting on UN resolutions condemning the war in Ukraine, including a vote held at the UN General Assembly last week.
It has also defended its decision to increase its oil imports from Russia, saying it has to look after the needs of more than a billion people.
But it has talked about the importance of "the UN Charter, international law, and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states" in its past statements on Ukraine.
