Indonesia took over the presidency of the G20 nearly a year ago with the slogan ’emerge together, emerge stronger’, which was a perfect fit for the world reeling from the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic at that time.
Today, however, the slogan, which appeared on buses and billboards ahead of the G20 summit in the Nusa Dua area of the resort island, appears to be a little less relevant. Especially when the world is facing economic challenges and food and energy shortages after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The summit will be held on November 15-16.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict and its impact on the global economy will be the subject of discussion here. However, all eyes are also on a meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday.
Relations between the two countries worsened after US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August. China called it a provocative move and in response conducted several military exercises around the self-ruled island.
Biden left for Bali late on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reach here on Monday. During this he will participate in the main sessions of the summit and have some bilateral meetings. Prime Minister Modi will hold bilateral meetings with several world leaders and will also participate in a community program of overseas Indians in Indonesia. However, it is not yet clear whether Modi will meet Chinese President Xi.
If there is a meeting between the two, it will be the first bilateral meeting after the violent clash between the armies of the two countries in Galvan Valley in June 2020. The two leaders had attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in September, but there was no bilateral meeting between the two then.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided not to attend the summit. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will represent the country. Putin’s decision does not seem to have any bearing on the intentions of Western leaders, who are ready to openly condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia is likely to face strong condemnation during discussions on food and energy security at the summit.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had also made it clear before leaving for London that the G20 summit will not be as usual this time. Indonesia is the current chair of the G20. India will formally assume the presidency of the G20 from 1 December.
The G-20 or Group of 20 countries is an intergovernmental forum of the world’s major developed and developing economies. This includes Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union (EU).
