UK invites PM Modi for G7 summit

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited by his UK counterpart Boris Johnson to attend the G7 summit in the UK as a guest in June this year.

The summit will be held in England's Cornwall region from June 11 to 13.

Last year, US President Donald Trump had extended an invite to Prime Minister Modi for an expanded G7 meeting to discuss China.

On Sunday, an official statement issued by the British High Commission in New Delhi said that Prime Minister Johnson will use the G7 presidency to unite leading democracies to help the world build back better from coronavirus and create a greener, fairer and more prosperous future.

The G7 - UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US - along with the EU is the only forum where the world's most influential and open societies and advanced economies come together for close-knit discussions.

The UK has also invited heads of Australia and South Korea to attend as guest countries to deepen the expertise and experience around the table.

The statement said that Prime Minister Johnson's ambition is to use the G7 to intensify cooperation between the world's democratic and technologically advanced nations. Between them the 10 leaders represent over 60 per cent of people living in democracies around the world.

Describing the G7 as the most prominent group of democratic countries, Johnson said it has long been the catalyst for decisive international action to tackle the greatest challenges we face. "From cancelling developing world debt to our universal condemnation of Russia's annexation of Crimea, the world has looked to the G7 to apply our shared values and diplomatic might to create a more open and prosperous planet," he said.

Coronavirus, he said is "doubtless the most destructive force we have seen for generations and the greatest test of the modern world order we have experienced. It is only right that we approach the challenge of building back better by uniting with a spirit of openness to create a better future."

The statement said that as "the pharmacy of the world, India already supplies more than 50 per cent of the world's vaccines, and the UK and India have worked closely together throughout the pandemic."

Recalling that the UK was the first P5 member to support a permanent UNSC seat for India and the first G7 member to invite India to a G7 summit in 2005, the UK government said that as the current BRICS President and G20 President in 2023, India will play a key role in driving multilateral cooperation around the world.

2021 marks a crucial year of international leadership for the UK. In addition to the G7 summit, during February the UK will assume the Presidency of the UN Security Council and later this year, the UK will host COP26 in Glasgow and a global education conference aimed at getting children in the developing world into school.