Ukraine Issue Not on India’s Agenda At G-20 Leaders’ Summit

A key Indian official who is coordinating the country’s ongoing G-20 presidency on Wednesday spelled out New Delhi’s priority list as preparations gather steam of the 18th G-20 Heads of State and Government Summit in New Delhi, scheduled to take place on 9-10 September.

The Ukraine issue didn’t find a mention in the list of India’s priorities spelled out by Muktesh Pardeshi, Special Secretary, India’s G-20 Secretariat, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

Pardeshi said that these priorities had been “brainstormed by officials behind closed doors” under the guidance of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“We are focussing on inclusive and resilient growth. We are focussing on how to accelerate progress on the achievements of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We are focussing on Green Development and climate finance,” Pardeshi told a conference in New Delhi.

Pardeshi further said that the focus of India’s G-20 presidency was on promoting “sustainable consumption” which he underlined was embodied by Prime Minister Modi’s matra of ‘Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE).

“We are speaking about reforming multilateral institutions, including UN, World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF),” the Indian official remarked, outlining another key focal area for New Delhi at the leaders’ meeting.

Pardeshi told the conference that New Delhi’s “promoting the concept of technological transformation” and encouraging “women-led development” also figured on the New Delhi’s list of priorities.

The conference, ‘Making India Count: Role of Youth, Academia and Intellectuals’, was organized at Delhi University (DU) by New Delhi-based think tank Centre for Global India Insights (CGII).

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G-20 Summit is a 'High-Point for Indian Diplomacy': Pardeshi

Pardeshi underlined that hosting the upcoming G-20 Summit was a “high-point for India’s diplomacy”, also referring to the meeting as India’s “Olympic moment”.

“It is a high-point for India’s global leadership. It is a high-point for India’s policy-making and showcasing India to the world”, Pardeshi said.

He said that the G-20 presidency would leave a “lasting legacy”, in terms of shaping a “global narrative about India” as well as “augmenting the capacities” of the youth in hosting such mega-events in the future.

Pardeshi also listed as “showcasing of India’s business potential” and upgrading of country’s infrastructure as other benefits of the country’s G-20 presidency.

He underlined that New Delhi’s G-20 presidency was guided by the philosophy of ‘one earth, family, one future’, which he said represented the Indian civilizational ethos as well as “contemporary concerns”.

Pardeshi explained that as part of this approach, New Delhi has been highlighting the concerns of Global South as part of its G-20 presidency.

He said that a call on African Union’s (AU) G-20 membership, which has been proposed by India, would be taken at the upcoming summit.

The Ukraine Issue and India’s G-20 Presidency

The insistence of western countries, led by the US, to discuss the Ukraine issue at the G-20 platform has led to a stalemate of sorts when it comes to agreeing to a unanimously endorsed joint statement.

Crucial ministerial meetings held under India’s G-20 presidency this year haven't come out with a joint communique due to reference to “Bali geopolitical paragraphs”, which essentially refer to the phrasing of the paragraphs related to the Ukraine conflict.

Both Russia and China have objected to these paragraphs, with the Russian G-20 Sous-Sherpa Marat Berdyev telling the G-20 Development Ministers’ Meeting (DMM) in Varanasi last month that the West had been pressuring India to include the Bali geopolitical paragraphs in the final statement.

The Indian Foreign Ministry expressed confidence that the leaders of G-20 countries would be able to come out with a joint communique at the meeting in September.

Addressing a press conference last week, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bachi said that despite “differences” over Ukraine-related paragraphs, there was a “high degree of convergence” among the G-20 nation on a host of other issues.

Bagchi has said that a G-20 sherpa meeting would take place days before the G-20 Summit in order to try and agree to a joint communique.

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Ukraine Issue Not on India’s Agenda At G-20 Leaders' Summit

G-20 Summit is a 'High-Point for Indian Diplomacy': Pardeshi

The Ukraine Issue and India’s G-20 Presidency