Lavrov: Washington is "killing", "kidnapping" and trying to restore the era of colonialism

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the United States of seeking to dominate global energy markets, criticizing it for abandoning recognized international relations and "dealing with arrogance" with Latin American and Middle Eastern countries.

In an interview broadcast on Russian state television   late on Friday,  April 24, 2026, Lavrov said that Washington is "taking us back to a world where there is nothing" of the rules of international relations, noting that the United States is governed by the doctrine of hegemony over global energy markets.

Lavrov stressed that Washington "only cares about its own interest and is ready to defend that interest by any means, whether it be coups, kidnappings or assassinations of the leaders of countries that have natural resources that the Americans need."

Harsh criticism of Washington over Maduro's arrest and killing of Khamenei

As an example, Lavrov referred to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on January 3 and the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli raids on February 28, noting that Washington has tightened its grip on the Venezuelan oil sector, while the US-Israeli war on Iran has caused a global energy crisis, amid fears of supply disruptions and rising prices.

Lavrov accused Washington of inciting European  countries to abandon the Nord Stream pipeline that carries Russian gas to Germany, and of supporting EU demands to dissuade Hungary and Slovakia from buying Russian gas.

"This is not a way to deal with international relations, it is an attempt to return to the colonial era," Lavrov said, while criticizing European policy, which he described as driven by "arrogance and contempt for others."

"Even as it seeks to reach a settlement to the four-year-old war with Ukraine, the United States is touting the benefits of enormous economic opportunity," he said.

Kremlin: Putin may attend G20 summit in Miami after US invitation

On the other hand, the Kremlin said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin may head to the G20 summit to be held in Miami, the United States, next December.

This came after statements by US President Donald Trump in which he pointed out the importance of Putin's attendance at the summit, criticizing  Moscow's suspension of membership in the Group of Eight in 2014 after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.

In the same context, a US official said that the United States has extended an invitation to Russia to attend the annual meeting of the G20 hosted in the city of Miami, adding that Moscow "accepted the invitation".

Putin has not attended the G20 summit since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then because of Russia's war on Ukraine in 2022, which triggered the biggest crisis in relations between Moscow and Western countries since the height of the Cold War.

What is the G20?

The G20 is the world's most prominent forum for international economic cooperation, bringing together the world's largest economies to discuss financial, social, and environmental issues, and currently includes 19 countries besides the European Union and the African Union, which officially joined in 2023, and the list of members includes Saudi Arabia, the United States, China, Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, India, Italy, Canada, Russia, Brazil, Australia, South Korea, Argentina, Mexico, Indonesia, South Africa, and Turkey, and these countries collectively represent about 85% of global GDP, 75% of international trade, and two-thirds of the world's population.

The G20 countries rotate annually, with the host country leading the agenda and overseeing the organization of the summit, while additional countries and international organizations are invited as guests, and Spain is a permanent guest at all meetings

As for the reason for the name "G20", it dates back to its establishment in 1999 with the membership of 19 countries in addition to the European Union, making a total of 20 economic entities, and although the African Union joined in 2023 to become the 21st member, the name remained the same due to its global fame and its association with the original version of the group.