Japan minister skips G20 reception in light of Russia's Ukraine action

Japan's Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi stayed away from a G20 reception in Indonesia in view of the international community's opposition to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a government spokesperson said on Friday.

Hayashi is attending a gathering of G20 foreign ministers in Bali, while Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov is also participating in the event. Moscow calls its actions in Ukraine a "special military operation".