G20 summit begins in New Delhi, Modi welcomes world leaders

The 18th annual summit of G20 leaders began in New Delhi on Saturday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning reached the G20 Summit venue Bharat Mandapam to welcome top world leaders to the two-day summit.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director and Chairman Kristalina Georgieva and World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala were among the first to arrive.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also arrived at the newly built venue at Pragati Maidan here.
Modi welcomed the world leaders against the backdrop of the replica of the Konark Wheel, a 13th-century artefact symbolising time, progress and continuous change. 

The Prime Minister was accompanied by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, among other officials.
The three main summits are based on themes of One Earth, One Family and One Future.

African Union becomes permanent member 

In a significant milestone under India's G20 presidency, the African Union on Saturday became a new permanent member of the grouping of the largest economies of the world. It is the first expansion of the influential bloc since its inception in 1999.

All member countries of the G20 accepted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposal to bring the key bloc of the Global South to the high table of the world's top economies.

"Honoured to welcome the African Union as a permanent member of the G20 Family. This will strengthen the G20 and also strengthen the voice of the Global South," Modi posted on X along with a video of his announcing that the African Union has become a permanent member of the G20.

In his inaugural remarks at the Summit, Modi asked the President of the Union of Comoros and Chairperson of the African Union (AU), Azali Assoumani, to join other leaders at the high table, making the 55-member bloc the second multi-nation grouping after the European Union to be a permanent member of the G20.

"In keeping with the sentiment of 'sabka saath' (with everyone), India had proposed that the African Union should be given permanent membership of the G20. I believe we all are in agreement on this proposal," Modi said at the Bharat Mandapam, the venue of the Summit.

Divided on Ukraine

The leaders have convened deeply divided over the war in Ukraine but in broad agreement on issues such as cryptocurrencies and reforms in multilateral development banks. According to a draft of the summit declaration reviewed by Reuters, negotiators were unable to resolve disagreements over the wording of the war in Ukraine, leaving it to the leaders to reach a compromise if possible.

The 38-page draft that was circulated among members left the "geopolitical situation" paragraph blank, while it had agreed on the 75 other paragraphs.

G20 sherpas, or country negotiators, have been struggling for days to agree on the language because of differences over the war, hoping to get Russia on board to produce what is called the Leaders' Declaration.

Russia is being represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the meeting, and he has said he will block the final declaration unless it reflects Moscow's position on Ukraine and other crises.

An official said Russia had the option to accept Western countries' views and give its dissent as part of the statement. In the absence of an agreement, India will have to issue a chair statement, which would mean that G20 for the first time in 20 years of summits will not have a declaration.

Other issues settled

The document showed that the group agreed to address debt vulnerabilities in low and middle-income countries "in an effective, comprehensive and systematic manner", but did not produce a plan for fresh action.

The draft also shows countries pledged to strengthen and reform multilateral development banks, while it accepted the proposal for tighter regulations of cryptocurrencies.

It also agreed that the world needs a total of $4 trillion in low-cost financing annually for energy transition. The draft did not mention a fossil fuel phase-down.

Noted for Chinese President's absence

The two-day summit is expected to be dominated by the West and its allies. Chinese President Xi Jinping is skipping the meeting and sending Premier Li Qiang instead, while Russia's Vladimir Putin will also be absent.

Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Saudi Arabia's Mohammed Bin Salman and Japan's Fumio Kishida, among others, will attend.

China, Russia's most powerful ally, said on Friday it is willing to work with all parties and push for a positive outcome at the summit.

India has avoided blaming Moscow for the war and has called for a solution through dialogue and diplomacy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is projecting India's presidency of the group and the summit as a showcase for the country's fast-growing economy and its rising global stature.

(With Reuters inputs.)