US invites Putin to G20 summit at Trump’s Miami golf club

The United States has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit scheduled for December in Miami. The meeting is due to take place at Trump National Doral, a golf club owned by Donald Trump.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the invitation at a press conference in New York after talks with Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. The Kremlin has not publicly responded.

If Putin attends, it would be his first in-person participation in a major summit of this kind since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Russia remains a G20 member, but Putin has not attended a summit since 2019; he joined one session virtually in 2023.

Rubio outlines Washington’s position

Rubio said Trump was willing to meet “virtually anyone” if doing so could help solve problems. He added that the US president remained open to a separate meeting with Putin in another setting if it had a specific purpose.

The invitation is likely to concern Ukraine and European countries. Their officials have recently accused Russia of hybrid attacks intended to disrupt logistics and increase political uncertainty among Kyiv’s allies.

Kyiv’s position on a possible meeting

Volodymyr Zelenskyy had said he was ready to travel to the summit and meet Putin if the Russian leader attended. Ukraine’s president has urged world leaders to keep pressuring Russian revenues and limiting Moscow’s ability to wage war.

Trump is seeking a partial ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, including a halt to attacks on oil-refining facilities. He has urged Zelenskyy to stop attacks on Russian oil sites, linking the request to lower diesel prices in the US.

Attacks continue despite diplomacy

Despite the diplomatic efforts, Russia has continued drone and missile attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said a petrol station, warehouses, a business centre and a transport infrastructure building were hit; one person was killed and eight injured.

Congress passed a sweeping Russia sanctions bill last week. It gives Trump authority to impose 100% tariffs on major purchasers of Russian energy exports, including China and India.