ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – The G20 Summit in New Delhi, India, officially closed in September 2023 and has resulted in the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration.
At the closing session, Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi also asked the G20 leaders to gather again virtually towards the end of India’s G20 Presidency to listen to the guidance provided by G20 members and provide encouragement to implement the results of the Summit.
However, as a forum for economic and financial meetings of the group of 20 largest economies in the world, the discussion of the issue was more about the conflict that occurred in Ukraine and Gaza than economic issues.
On Wednesday evening, November 22 2023, the meeting was held under the title Virtual G20 Leaders’ Summit which was attended by leaders of G20 countries, invited countries, and heads of international organizations, such as Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Comorian President Azali Assoumani, Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Argentinian President Alberto Fernández, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister Singapore Lee Hsien Long, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Spanish President Pedro Sanchez, French President Emmanuel Macron, UN Secretary General Antonio Gutteres, World Bank Group President Ajay Banga, and Managing Director International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva.
The meeting was opened by Indian PM, Narendra Modi, who conveyed the inclusive achievements of the New Delhi G20 Summit with the inclusion of the African Union in the G20 forum. On this occasion, PM Modi underlined the current conditions in the Middle East which are a world problem, not just a regional conflict, which requires immediate collective action. Apart from that, PM Modi also conveyed the importance of Global South cooperation and announced India’s contribution of $25 million to the Social Impact Fund in Global South countries.
The Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Airlangga Hartarto, who was present virtually on behalf of President Joko Widodo on this occasion, strengthened his support for Palestine amidst the current situation and emphasized the importance for G20 leaders to immediately take collective action to end the conflict in the Middle East.
Specifically, Coordinating Minister Airlangga called for a two-state solution in Palestine. This solution is supported by 6 other G20 country leaders.
“I want to ask emphatically, where is our voice regarding the atrocities that occur on Palestinian land? “As leaders of the G20, what have we done collectively to make the situation better, for the Palestinian people and the Gaza region,” stressed Coordinating Minister Airlangga in his intervention.
Coordinating Minister Airlangga added, “We are world leaders and have great power, therefore, our responsibility is also great. If the G20 could take action on the humanitarian situation elsewhere two years ago, we can do it in Gaza now. We must support the realization of a two-state solution based on internationally agreed parameters.”
The Ukrainian-Russian conflict has not ended until now and there is a new conflict in Gaza which is expected to increase the burden of the world crisis and make it further away from achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets, as commented by several other heads of government.
Without a peaceful atmosphere, it is difficult to plan the development of a more stable world economy after being hit by a pandemic. Coordinating Minister Airlangga then said that Indonesia was calling for two global actions to overcome the ongoing conflict, namely regarding the importance of global solidarity and leadership so that the G20 must continue to encourage dialogue. The world recognizes that the power of dialogue has been proven during the Indonesian Presidency of the G20 to bridge differences and prevent divisions within the G20.
The next global action is to place peace as a priority. Peace is a prerequisite for realizing development. The war that occurred has hampered the aspirations of G20 members to achieve the SDGs. The conflict will continue to be prolonged and result in many civilian casualties if all parties feel they are right in taking action in the name of the global order.
Regarding this situation, Coordinating Minister Airlangga emphasized, “The G20 must ensure that no party is above the law. We must avoid taking the law into our own hands. We must respect the UN Charter and international law, because conflict creates instability and economic turmoil. Concrete action is needed and we can start now.”
Furthermore, Coordinating Minister Airlangga added that the G20 must be able to encourage reform of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) that are more credible and prioritize innovative financing. In this case, Indonesia is encouraging the implementation of financing schemes such as the Just Energy Transition Partnership and the Global Blended Finance Alliance. Indonesia has also launched the Indonesian Carbon Exchange in September 2023.
In this virtual summit, the leaders of the G20 countries agreed to call for immediate action to end the conflict in Palestine and send humanitarian aid to the residents of the Gaza Strip. Apart from that, issues regarding climate change, energy transition, MDBs reform, the impact of information technology, and the implementation of Digital Public Infrastructure were the focus of the intervention delivered by the leaders of the G20 countries present.
The virtual G20 Summit which lasted for 3.5 hours was closed by PM Modi by expressing his appreciation for the G20 countries and invitees as well as international organizations who have supported the Indian Presidency and India’s readiness to support Brazil for the 2024 G20 Presidency as a Troika. With the end of India’s G20 Presidency, Indonesia’s role as Troika this year also ends. (AT Network)
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