Leaders of the G7 grouping and its five partner countries, including India, reiterated their commitment to promote a rules-based international order, respect other states’ territorial integrity and sovereignty, and defend the principles enshrined in the UN Charter following their summit in Germany.
That India has become a regular participant at the G7 summits—this was the third successive summit of the world’s most industrialised nation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended— is an acknowledgement of India’s growing role in global affairs.
It was, therefore, natural that PM Modi successfully navigated discussions to prioritise the need to address the concerns of the developing countries, including India, in just transition to green energy.
He not only succeeded in securing G7 members’ commitment to a $ 600 billion Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) but also persuade them to look at India as favoured destination. Exhorting the rich to invest in research, innovation, and manufacturing in the huge market for clean energy technologies that are emerging in India, PM Modi pointed out that India “can provide for every new technology and can make that technology affordable for the whole world”.
The PGII could benefit developing countries, and particularly India, by offering finance for decarbonisation efforts. Indian entrepreneurs and companies working to increase food security and improve the rural economy also stand to benefit from this global infrastructure investment partnership.
India is pivotal to actualisations of the PGII since the move is viewed as a counter to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which critics have termed a ‘debt trap’ for China’s allies. The tottering economies of Sri Lanka and Pakistan are recent examples of the Beijing’s debt trap diplomacy. Though India did not join the G7 joint statement on Ukraine, Prime Minister Modi successfully convinced the groups permanent members of India’s stand on the issue, saying that India wanted an end to the conflict through talks.
While the G7 summit did yield some positive results from the Indian point of view, the bilateral talks that PM Modi held with the leaders of the G7 and other participating countries were equally important.
On the sidelines of the summit, Modi held bilateral talks with several leaders, including Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz, EU President Ursula von der Leyen and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. He also interacted with US President Joe Biden and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.
The just-concluded G7 summit took place under the shadows of the Ukraine war, which has threatened economic recovery. Moreover, the Covid-19 pandemic is still not over, and there are many points of tension in the Indo-Pacific Region.
The major outcomes included the Global Alliance on Food Security; Climate Club, and a $600 billion Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment. Besides, the G7 nations underscored their commitment to humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Ukraine.
On foreign and security policy, the major focus was also on China. The G7 nations reiterated the “importance of maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific”, and reminded China to “abstain from threats, coercion, intimidation measures or use of force”.
The participation of India, Argentina, Indonesia, Senegal, and South Africa, strengthened the goal of the G7 German presidency — ‘Progress towards an equitable world. India is going to take over the G20 presidency soon. It is also an important member of the BRICS grouping. Since most of the issues discussed at the summit have broader implications and need wider ownership, India can become an important link between the G7, G20, and BRICS.
Since India now has very strong economic and strategic ties with all of them, it does not see this group with distrust. It is negotiating an FTA with the United Kingdom and has restarted negotiations for trade and investment agreements with the EU. As the Indian economy is likely to be one of the fastest growing economies in the post-pandemic phase, partnership with India is attractive for the West.
