Marwa Shaheen - Beth:

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said US President Joe Biden and his European counterparts will announce new sanctions against Russia and new measures to toughen existing ones during his trip to Brussels.

Sullivan said Biden would also discuss long-term adjustments to the posture of NATO forces and contingencies in the event of the use of nuclear weapons, and Biden would also announce joint action to enhance energy security in Europe, which relies heavily on Russian gas.

The United States and its allies imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and provided billions of dollars in arms and aid to Ukraine’s defense. Biden pledged not to send American soldiers to Ukraine, but promised to maintain Washington’s commitment to defend NATO members if they were attacked.

On Wednesday, Biden arrived in Brussels, where NATO and the European Union are based, and on Thursday held meetings with fellow leaders, attended an emergency NATO summit and met with the leaders of the Group of Seven, and addressed the European Union leaders at a meeting of the European Council.

Sullivan added that Biden will have the opportunity to coordinate the next phase of military assistance to Ukraine, and will join our partners in imposing more sanctions on Russia and toughening existing sanctions to stem evasion and ensure robust enforcement.

In response to a question about the use of nuclear weapons, Sullivan said that Russian President Vladimir Putin had raised the specter of their deployment, but that the United States had not changed its nuclear stance yet.

And he added, “But we are constantly monitoring this potential emergency, and of course we take it as seriously as possible, and we will consult with allies and partners on this emergency, and discuss what our possible response is.” And he indicated that the new sanctions will focus on implementing the previous ones.

Biden will also announce more US contributions to ease the humanitarian conditions of refugees and civilians inside Ukraine, many of whom are located inside besieged cities.

After Brussels, Biden traveled to Warsaw in a show of support for an ally that shares a border with Ukraine, and Sullivan said that while in Poland he would deal with US forces now helping to defend NATO territory and would meet with experts involved in the humanitarian response to the war, and the American would meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda, whose government has proposed that Poland replace Russia in the Group of Twenty, which includes the world’s largest economies.

Sullivan said that the United States wants to consult with its allies about Russia’s membership in the Group of Twenty, and added, “We believe that it cannot be business as usual in international institutions and the international community.”

Sullivan said Biden would travel to Europe “to ensure that we remain united, reinforce our collective resolve, and send a strong message that we are ready and committed for as long as it takes.”

The imposition of Western sanctions on Russia began since President Vladimir Putin announced, on Sunday, February 21, 2022, the recognition of the independence of Luhansk and Donetsk in the Ukrainian Donbass region, and the pace, intensity and comprehensiveness of those sanctions escalated with the start of the attack on Ukraine, Thursday, February 24.

With the Russian attack on Ukraine approaching entering the second month, Russia’s isolation has increased on all levels, economic, political, sports, and even cultural and cinematic, and with the failure of those unprecedented Western sanctions to force Moscow to retreat, Biden seeks in his trip to Europe to deprive Putin of membership in organizations International, and the role of the Group of Twenty.

What is the G20?

The G20 has a membership of 19 countries + the European Union.

They are the United States, China, Russia, India, Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Indonesia, Canada, France, Germany, Britain, Spain, Italy, Turkey, Argentina, South Africa, Mexico and South Korea.

The group is an international forum established in 1999, with the aim of discussing policies to enhance international financial stability, in addition to dealing with issues or crises that are greater than the capacity of one country, such as the Corona pandemic and climate change, for example.

The economies of the member states of the Group of Twenty represent about 90% of the global GDP, about two-thirds of the planet’s population, and about 80% of the total global trade movement, and the area of ​​its member states represents about half of the land area of ​​the globe.

The United States and its Western allies are studying the issue of Russia’s exclusion from the Group of Twenty major economies, according to what sources involved in the discussions told international media.

Can the United States of America expel Russia from the G-20?

According to sources from the G7, it is unlikely that Indonesia or members such as India, Brazil, South Africa and China would agree to exclude Russia from the group.

An official from one of the G20 countries in Asia said that it is impossible to take Russia out of the G20 unless Moscow takes such a decision on its own, adding that there is simply no action to deprive Russia of membership in the G20.

The sources also said that the possibility of countries in the group, such as China, India, Saudi Arabia and others, rejecting any attempt to exclude Russia, increased the possibility that some members would not attend this year’s meetings.

Russia’s ambassador to Jakarta, Lyudmila Vorobyova, said on Wednesday that President Putin intends to attend the G20 summit hosted by Indonesia this year, adding at a press conference, “Not only the G20, but many organizations are trying to expel Russia, and the West’s reaction is completely disproportionate.”