A bipartisan group of senators is urging President Donald Trump to withdraw Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invitation to the G20 summit scheduled for December 14-15 in Miami. The group, consisting of 13 senators, including six Republicans, expressed concerns that welcoming Putin would provide him with 'stature and legitimacy' amid Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine. The senators stated, 'We urge you to reverse course and rescind the invitation to President Putin.'
The letter was signed by Republican Senators Roger Wicker (Mississippi), John Cornyn (Texas), Thom Tillis (North Carolina), John Curtis (Utah), Jerry Moran (Kansas), and Alan Armstrong (Oklahoma), along with Democratic Senators Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire), Michael Bennet (Colorado), Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut), Chris Coons (Delaware), Ruben Gallego (Arizona), Tim Kaine (Virginia), and Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island). Wicker chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, while Shaheen is the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The senators also called for the administration to prevent other sanctioned Russian officials from participating in upcoming G20 meetings until Russia agrees to a 'just and lasting peace' in Ukraine.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the invitation on September 25, 2026, after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Rubio stated that the summit would provide an opportunity for Putin to engage with Trump and other world leaders.
The letter follows Trump's signing of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which grants the administration new tools to impose economic pressure on Moscow. The senators commended Trump for this action but questioned whether inviting Putin undermines that pressure, stating, 'If President Putin and his government are not isolated on the international stage, what incentive does Russia have to agree to a ceasefire?'
The senators also criticized the attendance of sanctioned Russian officials at previous G20 meetings in the U.S., citing Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov’s participation in a finance ministers meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, as well as Russian delegations at meetings in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Houston. Both Putin and Siluanov are sanctioned under Executive Order 14024, which targets harmful Russian foreign activities. The senators argued that allowing sanctioned Russian officials to attend U.S.-hosted G20 events provides Moscow with 'business-as-usual treatment' while the war continues.