G20 talks expose deep rift as Russia stays defiant while Rubio pursues sideline diplomacy

Russia showed no sign on Friday of softening its stance on Kyiv as G20 foreign ministers opened talks in the United States, with the Ukraine and Iran wars deepening rifts between the sprawling forum’s members.

Sharp disagreements emerged around the table, with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas accusing Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov of presenting “lies” on issues like the conflict in Ukraine. “He put…