Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend 18th G20 Summit in Delhi, according to a brief statement posted on the website of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The announcement effectively means President Xi Jinping will not be present as Beijing will not dispatch its two most powerful leaders abroad at the same time, let alone to speak at the same event.
Quoting foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, the statement said, "At the invitation of the government of the Republic of India, Premier of the State Council Li Qiang will attend the 18th G20 Summit to be held in New Delhi, India, on September 9 and 10." The spokesperson further said "China hopes the summit can consolidate consensus, convey confidence and promote development".
PM Modi calls for G20 unity, talks to end conflicts
“The world is looking at G20 to deliver results on many issues such as growth, development, climate change, pandemics and disaster resilience, which affect every part of the world. We have and we will always stand in support of peace, stability and progress,” Modi told a news agency in an interview, while responding to how India could help forge a consensus between G7 and the Russia-China combine.
All ministerial meetings held during India's presidency have ended without a communique due to differences in the two groups' perspectives, which India is keen to prevent and has been striving to ensure there is unanimity. India has maintained that development and growth must be given top billing and geopolitical issues, read Russia-Ukraine conflict in the current context, should be left for other groupings.
In the interview, he renewed his pitch to make the G20 more inclusive. “Africa is a top priority even within the G20. One of the first things we did during our G20 presidency was to hold the Voice of the Global South summit, which had enthusiastic participation from Africa. We believe no plan for the future of the planet can be successful without the representation and recognition of all voices,” he said.