PM Modi arrives in Italy for G7 Summit, may meet Meloni, Scholz, Sunak, Macron on sidelines
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in Italy for the G7 Summit early Friday, will likely meet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in separate bilateral meetings today.
These meetings will take place on the sidelines of G7 outreach summit in the Apulia region of Italy. In his departure statement, he said: “I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit.”
“I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Meloni’s two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda. We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions,” he said.
“During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India’s Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South,” the Prime Minister said.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said US President Joe Biden and PM Modi are expected to meet each other during the summit.“He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. It’s up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. What the nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid,” said Sullivan.
The agenda of the summit is likely to be dominated by the Russia-Ukraine war and the situation in Gaza. There is an expectation that there will be a proposal for increasing the funding for Ukraine, to be funded by seized Russian assets.
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