Leaders from the world's major economies have gathered in New Delhi for the annual G20 summit, hosted by India under its year-long presidency.
Key issues to take centre stage
Under India's leadership, the G20 has placed a strong focus on several pressing global issues:
Support for Developing Nations
One of the primary goals of this year's summit is to promote more significant loans to developing nations from multilateral institutions. The economic challenges faced by vulnerable countries have been exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and the G20 is seeking ways to provide financial support.
Reforming International Debt architecture
The G20 leaders are exploring reforms to the international debt architecture to address the growing debt burdens in many countries. Finding sustainable solutions to debt issues is crucial to prevent economic crises.
Cryptocurrency regulations
The G20 is engaging in discussions about regulating cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrencies have gained prominence in recent years, and there is a growing need for global regulatory frameworks to ensure their stability and security.
Geopolitical uncertainties
The impact of geopolitical tensions on food and energy security is a significant concern. The G20 is assessing how global instability, such as the conflict in Ukraine, can affect the availability and affordability of essential resources.
Division over ukraine
Despite these critical issues, the G20 has struggled to issue joint statements due to a deep division over language referring to the war in Ukraine. While Western countries, including the United States, France, and Canada, seek a strong condemnation of Moscow for the war, Russia and China have been against blaming Russia. This disagreement has stalled progress on important matters.
Attendees
The G20 summit in New Delhi has a diverse list of attendees, including:
- Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez
- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva
- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
- French President Emmanuel Macron
- German Chancellor Olaf Scholz
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
- Indonesian President Joko Widodo
- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
- Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
- Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
- South African President Cyril Ramaphosa
- South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol
- Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan
- U.S. President Joe Biden
- European Union: President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President of the European Council, Charles Michel
Special invitees
Several leaders from other nations have been invited as special guests, including Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, and the UAE.
Notable absences
Notably, Chinese President Xi Jinping is absent from the summit, represented by Prime Minister Li Qiang. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Russian President Vladimir Putin are also missing, with their respective countries represented by other officials.
As the G20 summit unfolds, the world will be watching to see if leaders can overcome their differences and make progress on the critical global issues facing the international community.
