Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Japan on Thursday, June 27, for the summit of the leaders of the G-20. The summit, which is being held at Osaka on June 28-29, will be PM Modi's sixth G20 summit.
PM Modi will meet several world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping, French president Emmanuel Macron, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe.
Taking to Twitter, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that PM Modi will hold bilateral and multilateral meetings with several leaders today morning. The prime minister will be staying in Osaka for three days.
Ahead of departure, the prime minister issued a statement, setting the agenda for the global summit. PM Modi hopes to engage with the participating countries on a varied range of issues starting from women empowerment to terrorism and artificial intelligence. PM Modi also said: "The summit will provide an important opportunity to reiterate and reinforce our strong support to reformed multilateralism, which is crucial for preserving rule-based international order in today's fast-changing world."
Key points: PM Modi's agenda for G20 Summit
1. Terrorism: While several countries have repeatedly condemned India's nuclear-armed neighbour Pakistan for not acting against terrorism breeding on its soil, the topic will again be back in focus on Thursday and PM Modi is likely to bring up how Pakistan has failed to comply with the norms on terror financing. The global terror watchdog has already grey listed Pakistan for failing to control terror activities.
2. Trade: Even though the Trump administration wants India to lower trade barriers and embrace fair and reciprocal trade, keeping trade free of protectionism ranks is one of Modi's highest objectives. India has always been vocal about issues such as global trade growth and rising barriers to the free flow of goods.
3. Women empowerment: The issue of women empowerment will be high on PM Modi's agenda. The effective involvement of women in our society and economy is the touchstone of a developed fraternity. The Modi-led BJP government at the Centre has already stated that efforts are being made to provide better employment opportunities to women.
The theme of the G20 summit 2019 is human-centred future society. Issues starting from food security, energy security, financial stability, terrorism-related issues, innovation in the digital economy and artificial intelligence will be discussed in the summit. Over 20 countries will be participating in this year's G20 Summit.
The prime minister's office (PMO) tweeted: "Early morning arrival in Osaka. The #G20 Summit, bilateral and multilateral interactions await PM @narendramodi in the coming two days. He will elaborate on many issues of global importance and present India's viewpoint."
Also, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar posted on Twitter saying, "PM @narendramodi arrives at Kansai International airport in #Osaka to attend the #G20summit. Over the next 3 days, PM has a range of bilateral and plurilateral engagements to articulate India's views on the global platform."
