September 11th 2023.
The G20 summit has seen a successful resolution to the stalemate over the joint declaration concerning Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself declared that consensus had been reached, despite strong opposition from Russia and China.
The West had wanted a stronger condemnation of the Russian aggression, however, a more general statement has been included in the 38-page document, which reflects the global forum’s unease at Russia’s actions. It is clear that the old global order is crumbling, and the rise of a new one is causing plenty of hiccups. For example, the Brics summit in South Africa saw a very assertive China, hoping to turn the organisation into a pro-China bloc.
This has led to the suggestion by former Economic Adviser to the Finance Minister Arvind Subramanian that India should quit Brics, due to China and Russia’s hijacking the forum for their own ends. China is known to suborn smaller African and Latin American countries with the Belt and Road Initiative, and then extract a huge price in return. India does not have the kind of money that China has, so India’s diplomatic actions are informed by altruistic objectives.
Though the success of the G-20 summit will likely benefit India, the Opposition has expressed discomfort with Modi burnishing his domestic image ahead of the Lok Sabha poll in April-May. They have compared the summit to the 1983 Non-Aligned Summit, however, this was much smaller in ambition and content.
The Opposition has further stooped low, with Rahul Gandhi, chaperoned by his foreign sherpa Sam Pitroda, holding forth on domestic issues in Brussels. This controversial exercise was only to berate the Indian government when the latter was hosting a significant global summit, and it showed a complete lack of common sense.
It is clear that the Opposition should be gracious and cooperate with the government, instead of stooping so low as to hurt the national interest. It would be in the fitness of things if they felicitated the Prime Minister at the end of the successful G-20 summit, hopefully putting aside their bitterness and pettiness.
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