Apulian interlude

Mr Modi hit the right notes

Four days after being sworn in as Prime Minister for a third time, Narendra Modi travelled to Italy to attend the 50th G7 summit. India was one of 12 countries and five organisations invited to the G7’s outreach programme in Fasano, in the Apulia region, situated on the heel of Italy. In terms of tonality, Mr Modi appeared to have hit the right notes. His visit took place a week after the European Union’s own massive elections, the largest exercise after India’s, and ahead of consequential elections for several G7 leaders — the United States, France, and the UK. Indeed, the longest section of Mr Modi’s speech dwelt on the impressive logistics involved in conducting the Indian elections, which he described as “the biggest festival of democracy in the world”. Technology accounted for the second-largest portion of his speech, focusing on the importance of technology access to make the world a more equitable, democratic place and underlining the need to make technology “creative and not destructive”.
 

His call to end tech monopolies as a founding member and lead chair of the Global Partnership for Artificial Intelligence (AI) sits well with the current mood of governments across the world — especially in Europe — as they challenge the power of Big Tech. His appeal for heralding a “Green Era” is also apt, indirectly highlighting for the world’s richest and most powerful nations the need for higher levels of funding of mitigation and adaptation by the world’s poorest countries that face the brunt of climate change. He did not fail to mention that India was among the first countries to fulfil its commitments under COP (Conference of Parties) ahead of time. Perhaps his most direct message to the G7 was on the Global South, the leadership of which India has sought to assume, especially by making Africa a permanent member of the G20 during the New Delhi summit last year. As he rightly pointed out, it is the Global South that is “bearing the brunt of global uncertainties and tensions”, an oblique reference to the continuing war in Gaza.
 

In terms of diplomacy, the gains were mixed. With Indo-US tensions having cooled since the G20 summit, there was a brief handshake with President Joe Biden but no formal meeting, which was explained by officials as an inability to coordinate calendars. A handshake with Justin Trudeau, with whom tensions have been running high over the murder of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil, also suggested that the dialogue between the two countries was alive. Later the Canadian Prime Minister talked about a commitment to collaborate on addressing some “very important issues”. A meeting with Ukraine’s embattled President Volodymyr Zelenskyy just before the Swiss Peace Conference got underway near Lake Lucerne enabled Mr Modi to underline India’s preferred position of finding a resolution to the war with Russia through “dialogue and diplomacy”.  India sent a high-level delegation from the Ministry of External Affairs. The most concrete gain for India was perhaps a commitment by the G7 to promote India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC), which was announced on the sidelines of the G20 summit last year, though that remains contingent on a solution to the Israel-Hamas war. As a starting point to Mr Modi’s third term, the G7 meeting proved a fortuitous global stage.