Will Ukraine war overshadow key G20 foreign ministers’ meet? These are the other problems that need urgent attention

Bigwigs such as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang and their Russian and British counterparts – Sergey Lavrov and James Cleverly – have gathered in New Delhi to attend the G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting (FMM) being held from 1-2 March. While the major G20 meetings are slated for Thursday, a welcome dinner is planned for the evening today. Representatives from 40 countries, including non-G20 members, and 13 international organisations, are expected to attend the crucial conference. What will be the agenda at the G20 Foreign Ministers meeting? Let’s take a closer look. Two sessions External affairs minister (EAM) Dr S Jaishankar will preside over two sessions during the G20 meeting which will be organised at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Center. In the first session, multilateralism and issues related to food and energy security, as well as development cooperation will be on the top agenda. As per The Hindu, the threat of counter-terrorism, global skill mapping and talent pool, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief will be the focus of the second session. [caption id=“attachment_12228302” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Representatives from 40 countries, including non-G20 members, will attend the G20 meeting on Thursday. AP[/caption] Addressing a special briefing on G20 FMM today, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra said that the role of cryptocurrencies will also feature during discussions on the threat of terrorism. “What we expect from tomorrow’s meet is a clear, strong all-encompassing message on the problem of terrorism, its challenges and the need for the G20 countries to come together to fight, address and defeat it comprehensively. Naturally, crypto will form one constituent of it,” Kwatra said, as per ANI. Further, the top Indian diplomat said deliberations will also be held on “inclusive and resilient growth, the entire rubric of green development and sustainable environment, technology transformation, reforming multilateral institutions and issues related to women-led development”, reported CNBC-TV18. The foreign ministers of the world’s largest economies are also expected to hold talks on dealing with sinking economic growth, soaring inflation, and surge in prices of food, fuel and fertilisers. “For India, the questions relating to the food, energy and fertiliser security, the impact that the conflict has on these economic challenges we face, the development cooperation template that India wants to talk about, new and emerging threats- the problem of counter-terrorism, counter-narcotics, each one of them is a very significant and substantial issue which is absolutely crucial for the Global South,” Kwatra was quoted as saying by ANI. An Indian foreign ministry official told Reuters earlier that New Delhi intends to “continue playing the voice of the Global South” and raise “issues pertinent to the region”. ALSO READ: G20 foreign ministers’ meet: Will India broker peace as Antony Blinken comes face-to-face with Sergey Lavrov? Russia-Ukraine war Kwatra also said that Russia’s war in Ukraine will “naturally” be an “important point of discussion” during the FMM meet, as per Financial Express. The foreign secretary said the impact of the war on the global economy and on development will also be a part of the talks. As per Associated Press (AP), tensions between East-West relations over the war are set to dominate in what it said is expected to be a “highly contentious” meeting of foreign ministers. [caption id=“attachment_12228312” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov will try to corner NATO and European Union. AP[/caption] Russia has said it would use the conference to tell the world who is responsible for the political and economic crises that the world is facing, reported Reuters. “The entire world is suffering from the cynical revelry of illegal sanctions, the artificial breakup of cross-border supply chains, the imposition of notorious price ceilings and, in effect, from attempts to steal natural resources,” the Russian foreign ministry said, as per The Hindu. Lavrov will also raise the suspected sabotage of the Nord Stream II gas pipeline during the meeting. “We are set to clearly state Russia’s assessments of the current security, energy and food situation. We will present an unbiased factual picture of the act of terrorism — the bombing of the Nord Stream gas pipeline in the EU and NATO zone of responsibility, and the illegal seizing of Russian humanitarian fertiliser shipments designated for African and other needy countries,” The Hindu cited the Russian foreign ministry as saying. The European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy will also convey a “strong message” on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its global consequences. Efforts for a joint statement After failing to build a consensus in a meeting of finance chiefs of G20 countries in Bengaluru last Saturday, India will make efforts to bring out a joint statement after this week’s key summit. The finance chiefs were unable to agree on a joint communique after Russia and China objected to the description of the war in Ukraine, thus leading to India putting out a chair’s summary instead. Russia had said on Sunday that no consensus could be reached due to the “confrontational” approach towards Moscow by the “collective West” over the Ukraine situation. Bringing all sides to the table would be a challenge for India, as the EU delegation has no plans to back a statement at the G20 meeting if it evades a condemnation of the war, reported Reuters. With inputs from agencies Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News,  Cricket News,  Bollywood News,  India News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.