World leaders are gathering in India ahead of a G20 summit between nations that are divided on many issues, the biggest being the war in Ukraine following Russia’s invasion.
On Friday evening US President Joe Biden met his host, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the leaders pledging cooperation in a raft of areas.
However the Chinese and Russian leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin will not be attending.
Despite the disagreements India has been pushing hard for members to agree a declaration – if this summit ends without one, it will be a first.
The G20 is the world’s 19 biggest economies plus the European Union.
The war also loomed large over last year’s G20 summit in Indonesia, but the group was able to put together a hurried declaration that noted the differences within the G20 over the war.
But positions have hardened since then – Russia and China may not agree to give such concessions and the West, led by the US, will also not accept anything less than a clear condemnation of the war.
The absence of Mr Xi and Mr Putin might make decision-making a little harder. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and China’s Premier Li Qiang will represent their countries instead, but they may not have the political heft to make last-minute concessions without consulting their leaders.
Organisation (SCO). The Brics recently inducted Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE – all of them have good relations with China – into the group.
India is one of the few countries that are part of the Brics and the SCO, as well as of West-dominated forums like the Quad, G7 (as an invited member) and the G20.
In that context, it’s important for Delhi to deliver a successful summit with actionable outcomes which will bolster its status as an important global power and Mr Modi’s image as a consequential world leader.
It will show Delhi’s ability to not only understand but also balance competing demands of different multilateral forums. And it will also help further boost the Indian PM’s image at home, where a general election is due next year.
With Mr Modi taking foreign policy to smaller Indian towns and cities through G20 events, the stakes are high for him both at home and in the global political order.