Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky started with a visit to Italy, visited several countries including Germany, the UK and France for the past week, attended the Arab League (GCC) summit, and attended the G7 summit. It is developing active diplomacy seeking Western support for the
By comparison, Russian President Vladimir Putin was seen sitting at a large table and keeping his distance from the attendees during a meeting with local officials in the southern Russian city of Pyatigorsk.
As the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for President Putin, who was isolated from the world as never before, it is difficult to visit many countries that were Russia’s allies.
Teresa Phelon, director of the Institute for Russia, Europe and Asia in Brussels, said in the invasion of Ukraine, “Putin gambled and failed really badly. He is really isolated from the international community.”
Just 10 years ago, Putin was invited to the G7 Northern Ireland summit and met with US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. kicked out later
It appears that Putin’s spotlight has now shifted to Ukraine.
President Zelensky’s attendance at the G7 Summit in Hiroshima has great significance for its symbolism and international situation.
Nigel Gould-Davis, Senior Research Fellow for Russia and Europe at the Institute for International Strategic Studies (IISS), said: “This shows the G7’s continued strong support for Ukraine. This is a tangible indication that the world’s most industrialized developed countries will continue to support it.”
It is unclear whether Putin will be able to attend the BRICS summit scheduled for August in South Africa. BRICS is composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Russia has emphasized that the BRICS stand against Western world domination. This year, however, Putin’s attendance has become an embarrassing issue as South Africa, an ICC treaty country, is obliged to execute war criminal arrest warrants.
South Africa is gearing up for a visit without announcing definitively whether Putin will attend the summit. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has asked Vice President Paul Mysatile to set up a government committee to consider ways to allow Putin to visit without violating the ICC treaty.
Senior Research Fellow Gould-Davis pointed out that even if Putin did visit South Africa, the chances of him being arrested would be slim, but discussing his presence publicly would have a “negligible adverse effect.”
Relations between Russia and neighboring countries are also estranged. Last week, Putin invited leaders from Armenia, Belarus and Central Asia to celebrate his victory in Moscow’s Red Square.
But Russia’s waning influence in Central Asia was highlighted this week as leaders from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan held summits with President Xi Jinping in China.
This month, visa waivers for Georgians visiting Russia and the resumption of direct flights that were suspended a year ago did not go smoothly. Protesters protested the landing of the first plane in Russia, and the pro-Western president of Georgia called the resumption of direct flights provocative.
By contrast, Ukrainian President Zelensky’s foreign trip is successful in many ways.
Scottish strategy professor Phillips O’Brien said that being invited by heads of state is a sign that they think Ukraine is “winning the war”. “It can never happen to invite the leader of a country that is expected to lose a war and collapse.”
In contrast, ICC arrest warrants could make it difficult for leaders to even visit Russia to meet Putin. “It’s not a good look to see someone accused of a war crime,” said researcher Gould-Davis.
In particular, European leaders expressed their intention to provide fighter jets, which Ukraine has long requested, in addition to various missiles, tanks, and drones to Zelensky.
President Zelensky’s attendance at the Arab League summit shows that his call for support is extending to countries with deep ties to Russia.
[탈린=AP/뉴시스]
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.