A Russian government official will attend next week’s G20 energy meeting in Houston, the White House confirmed Friday, just weeks after Moscow’s return to an in-person G20 ministerial gathering triggered protests from European officials over Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine. The G20 Ministerial Meeting on Energy Abundance will run from Monday through Wednesday, Sept. 14-16, with US Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and White House official Jarrod Agen among those attending.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Energy officials from Europe and Asia are also expected at the three-day gathering. The White House has not disclosed the identity of the Russian representative. Europeans bristled at Russia’s G20 return The Russian presence comes less than two weeks after Finance Minister Anton Siluanov attended a G20 finance meeting in Asheville, North Carolina – the first time Russia’s finance minister had participated in person since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. His attendance angered European officials, who warned against any normalization of relations with Moscow while Russia continues its war. German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil called the signal sent by receiving Siluanov as a regular participant “quite troubling” and said he would have preferred greater clarity from Washington that the Russian minister should not be treated as a normal guest. European ministers and central bankers also opposed appearing alongside Siluanov in the traditional G20 “family photo.” Organizers ultimately took the photograph without the Russian minister.