G20 Delhi Declaration refers to war 'in' and not 'against' Ukraine in major shift from Bali Declaration as G7, EU relent

The G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration adopted Friday has called for the establishment of a “comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in Ukraine.” The group leaders have also been urged to “refrain from the threat of use of force to seek territorial acquisition” or any actions that might undermine the territorial integrity of any nation. The Delhi Declaration that has received 100 per cent consensus on all developmental and geo-political issues also laid a special emphasis that “the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible.” The G20 declaration this year was more explicit than that of Indonesia last year as it cited a United Nations resolution condemning in “strongest terms… aggression by Russian Federation against Ukraine”. The 29-page G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration, announced by which by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the beginning of the second session of the G20 Leaders’ Summit at Bharat Mandapan in New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan, read: “Concerning the war in Ukraine, while recalling the discussion in Bali, we reiterated our national positions and resolutions adopted at the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly (A/RES/ES-11/1 and A/RES/ES-11/6) and underscored that all states must act in a manner consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter in its entirety. In line with the UN Charter, all states must refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state. The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible.” The Delhi declaration of G20 was agreed by all the member countries after India changed the text on Ukraine and stuck to explicitly mentioning Russia’s war “in” Ukraine, rather than using the “against Ukraine” wording sought by the US and its allies. In total, Ukraine was mentioned four times in the entire Delhi declaration. ‘Comprehensive, just, & durable peace in Ukraine’ The G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration called on all states to uphold the principles of international law including territorial integrity and sovereignty, international humanitarian law, and the multilateral system that safeguards peace and stability. “The peaceful resolution of conflicts, and efforts to address crises as well as diplomacy and dialogue are critical. We will unite in our endeavour to address the adverse impact of the war on the global economy and welcome all relevant and constructive initiatives that support a comprehensive, just, and durable peace in Ukraine that will uphold all the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter for the promotion of peaceful, friendly, and good neighbourly relations among nations in the spirit of ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’,” it read. ‘Impacts of war in Ukraine’ The Delhi Declaration highlighted the human suffering and negative added impacts of the war in Ukraine with regard to global food and energy security, supply chains, macro-financial stability, inflation and growth were highlighted, which has complicated the policy environment for countries, especially developing and least developed countries which are still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic disruption which has derailed progress towards the SDGs. There were different views and assessments of the situation.