G20 meet in New Delhi, lid on Jammu and Kashmir buzz

 External affairs ministry says India is likely to host 200 related events across the country over the coming months

Arindam Bagchi.: File photo

Anita Joshua   |  TT  |   New Delhi   |   14.09.22 : India will assume the presidency of the G20 in December and host the leaders’ summit on September 9 and 10, 2023, in the national capital, the external affairs ministry announced on Tuesday.

The declaration put a lid on speculation of the summit being held in Jammu and Kashmir as part of an effort by the Narendra Modi government to showcase return of normality to the fledgling Union Territory.

Though reports of Jammu and Kashmir being the venue of the summit have been floating around since June and saw both China and Pakistan express concern over this, the Indian government did not issue a categorical denial. External affairs ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi had said there was no need to speculate, while informally officials indicated that the leaders’ summit could only be held in a city with the necessary infrastructure and paraphernalia to host the heads of state/government of 20 countries.

Making the formal announcement on Tuesday, the ministry said India was likely to host 200 related events across the country over the coming months. Officials had earlier indicated that one of these events could be held in Jammu and Kashmir.

Given that the summit will be held in the last leg of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term, it is bound to be showcased in the election campaign as a sign of India’s rising profile on the world stage under his watch.

Exercising the right of the G20 presidency to invite non-member countries and international organisations (IOs) to the meetings and summit, India has decided to invite Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain and the UAE as guest countries, besides the International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure and the Asian Development Bank as guest IOs.

Should the Russia-Ukraine conflict continue into India’s presidency of the G20, New Delhi is likely to face pressure from the West to not invite Moscow to the summit. Indonesia, which holds the G20 presidency currently, had come under immense pressure from the US and other western countries aligned against Russia to not invite President Vladimir Putin to this year’s summit in November.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo held his ground and invited Putin but as a compromise also extended an invitation to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky though Ukraine is not a member of the G20.