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President Joe Biden has 62 days left in office but it’s almost as if he has checked out already. The U.S. commander in chief was nowhere to be seen Monday as he missed the traditional gathering of world leaders at the final Group of 20 (G20) summit of his presidency, a group photo no-show officials simply attributed to timing.
The 81-year-old and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau instead wandered up after the official picture has been taken, as other world leaders milled about chatting after having smiled and warmly held hands for the picture, AP reports.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders attending the 19th G20 Summit pose for a group photo in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Nov. 18, 2024. Xi attended the G20 Summit on Monday. (Li Xueren/Xinhua via Getty Images)
The timing left Chinese President Xi Jinping front and center among the rows of leaders posed against blue skies and blue water in Rio de Janeiro. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stood, less visible, in a back row.
The AP report noted:
A senior Biden administration official, who was not authorized to comment publicly, said Biden and other leaders missed the photo because of “logistical issues.”
Biden had intended to be part of the photo, but it occurred earlier than scheduled.
Biden and Trudeau arrived together at the designated spot for the photo, standing and looking around for a time before the realisation set in they had missed their chance.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was also absent from the traditional set piece photo and the three then had their own huddle in front of the cameras.
A few days earlier Biden had drawn attention to himself when he appeared to wander off alone into an Amazon rainforest after making a speech on climate change in Brazil at the COP29 summit.
U.S. President Joe Biden looks on as he realises he missed the signature group photo event that is part of the G20 Summit 2024 at Museu de Arte Moderna on November 18, 2024 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
President Joe Biden wanders off alone into a rainforest after speaking following a tour of the Museu da Amazonia, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, in Manaus, Brazil. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
The Guardian reports U.S. officials denied Biden missed the photo – officially for the launch of the Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s alliance to curb world hunger – to avoid appearing alongside Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.
President Vladimir Putin was conspicuously absent from the Rio summit. His arrest is sought by the international criminal court over the Ukraine war.
