PM Modi Meets World Leaders at G7 Summit

Bari, Jun 14 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday met a host of world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, on the sidelines of the G7 Summit here in the southern resort town of Italy.

"It's always a pleasure to meet @POTUS @JoeBiden. India and USA will keep working together to further global good," Modi said in a post on X along with some photographs of their interaction.

Modi held talks with Japanese Prime Minister Kishida on the margins of the summit and is believed to have discussed issues of mutual and regional interests.

Modi also met Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau at the G7 Summit.

This was their first face-to-face meeting after Trudeau claimed that the Indian government agents were involved in the killing of a Khalistani separatist in Canada last year. Canada has arrested four Indian nationals in connection with the case.

"Met Canadian PM Justin Trudeau at the G7 Summit,” Modi tweeted.

The ties between India and Canada came under severe strain following Trudeau's allegations. India has dismissed Trudeau's charges as "absurd" and "motivated."

"Pleased to meet @UN Secretary General, Mr. @antonioguterres in Italy," Modi said in a post on X.

Prime Minister Modi had a "good meeting" with UN chief Guterres, his office said.

Modi also met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Brazil President Lula da Silva and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

"The interactions in Italy continue...Delightful conversation with President @LulaOficial, President @RTErdogan and His Highness Sheikh @MohamedBinZayed," Modi posted along on X with a photo with them.

PM Modi had a "wonderful conversation" with the three leaders, the PMO said.

He also met Jordan's King Abdullah II on the sidelines of the G7 Summit. "India values the strong ties with Jordan," he said.

The Group of Seven industrialised nations on Friday committed to promoting concrete infrastructure initiatives such as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) in the G7 Summit Communique issued at the end of day two of the summit, attended by Prime Minister Modi.

The Communique was issued after the customary “family photo” at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia, where the G7 also reiterated a commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” based on the rule of law.

With reference to the Outreach session on the topic of Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Africa and the Mediterranean addressed by Modi, the Communique reads: “In a spirit of shared responsibility, we warmly welcome the participation of the Leaders of Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, India, Jordan, Kenya, Mauritania, Tunisia, Türkiye, and the United Arab Emirates.

“We will step up our efforts to enhance interoperability amongst our AI governance approaches to promote greater certainty, transparency and accountability while recognizing that approaches and policy instruments may vary across G7 members. We will take a risk-based approach in these efforts as we seek to foster innovation and strong, inclusive, and sustainable growth.”

Among the other priorities of the summit's agenda, the communique registers “unwavering support” for Ukraine in its ongoing conflict with Russia.

It notes: “With a view to supporting Ukraine's current and future needs in the face of a prolonged defence against Russia, the G7 will launch Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) Loans for Ukraine, in order to make available approximately USD 50 billion in additional funding to Ukraine by the end of the year.

"Therefore, without prejudice to possible other contributions and standing together, the G7 intends to provide financing that will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the European Union and other relevant jurisdictions. To enable this, we will work to obtain approval in these jurisdictions to use future flows of these extraordinary revenues to service and repay the loans.”

Pope Francis became the first pontiff to join the participants of the G7 hosted by Italy

Besides India, Italy invited leaders from 11 developing countries in Africa, South America and the Indo-Pacific region to attend the G7 Summit.