G20 Official Photo Canceled After Protests Against Russian Minister

The traditional family photo at the G20 foreign ministers' meeting was canceled in Atlanta. The decision followed a refusal by several European diplomats to appear in the picture alongside Russian minister Sergei Lavrov.

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband confronted Lavrov during the meeting. He accused the Russian government of causing the deaths of innocent civilians in Ukraine and called for greater economic and diplomatic pressure on Moscow.

The United States government, which hosted the event, chose to cancel the photo session to avoid diplomatic distractions. The official goal is to keep the focus of the discussions on the substantive agenda of the world's twenty largest economies.

British officials reiterated that they maintain a policy of avoiding direct bilateral engagements with Russian ministers since the start of the invasion. Ukraine did not receive an invitation to participate in this edition of the ministerial meeting.

The geopolitical climate reflects persistent tensions between global powers over the conflict in Eastern Europe. Instability in international relations may increase risk aversion in financial markets and boost the search for reserve assets.