Putin invited to Trump’s Florida resort for G20

The United States has formally invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit on December 14 and 15 at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Florida, a resort owned by U.S. President Donald Trump. “We hope he accepts the invitation,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday. Rubio spoke after meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the United Nations. He said Trump is willing to meet with almost anyone. “To solve problems, you have to meet with people you disagree with,” Rubio said. “That is why we invited President Putin to the G20 summit. We see it as a chance for him to interact not only with the president, but also with other world leaders.” Rubio said Putin and Trump have spoken by phone at least a dozen times since Trump took office. He said a meeting with clear results would be ideal, but that Putin’s attendance in December could still create a chance for dialogue. Many G20 leaders are unlikely to welcome Putin. When Lavrov attended a G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, last month, European officials protested. He was left out of the traditional group photo. German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil called the presence of Russian official Anton Siluanov “a worrying signal” because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia was suspended from the G8 in 2014 after Putin annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula. Russia remains a member of the G20.