China’s ploy won't work; regardless of Xi Jinping’s absence, India’s hosting of G20 is already a solid success

As New Delhi gets ready to host the G20 finale this week, China has let it be known that Xi Jinping would skip the event. In a measure of the state of bilateral relationship, it appears that Xi’s decision to send Chinese premier Li Qiang to the summit instead was conveyed to western officials and the  media before the hosts were made officially aware, and even as speculation went rife and suspense grew, a written communication wasn’t shared with the Indian side until Saturday (2 September). In fact, latest reports in Indian media on ‘confirmation’ of Xi’s non-attendance are still based on “sources”. Contrast this with Vladimir Putin who had dialled Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 28 August to convey his inability to attend the multilateral gathering and his decision to send foreign minister Sergey Lavrov as proxy. It is not that China is unaware of protocol, or the importance and pride the Modi government has attached on hosting the event as the chair of G20, the first time India has done so under the rotating system. Since assuming presidency of the influential, if conflicted, geopolitical grouping India has left no stone unturned to leave its mark. India has differentiated its term as one where the voice of the Global South reverberates and issues that are rarely discussed ges ample airtime led by a leading power that sees itself as exceptional, responsible, and an increasingly capable democracy — the world’s fifth-largest economy that is aiming higher and driving global growth. Organised under the theme of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ or ‘One Earth, One Family’, India’s approach to G20 can be understood from the fact that since taking over from Indonesia in December last year, the Modi government has held over 220 sectoral meetings in 60 cities across the length and breadth of the country including Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh, and over 300 cultural programmes showcasing India’s strength in diversity. The finale is expected to confirm and reinforce India’s status as a preeminent power, and that is exactly why the action of Xi Jinping, who has never failed to attend any edition of the key geopolitical forum since coming to power in 2013, may be interpreted as a spiteful snub and a cynical attempt to undermine India’s moment. It is already known that a consensus on Ukraine will be difficult to achieve in the final Leaders’ Declaration with the US-led West on one side, and Russia and China on the other adopting intractable positions. With just days to go, Lavrov has already declared that Russia will block the final declaration unless it reflects Moscow’s position on Ukraine, leaving India with little negotiation space for a joint communique except another possible ‘chair’s summary’. That said, India has already caught global imagination with its hosting of the G20, a grouping of nations whose combined GDP amounts to 85 per cent of the world’s GDP, and Modi government has deftly used the forum to project power and announce India’s arrival on the geopolitical stage. As an impact event, regardless of whether Putin or Xi is absent from the summit in New Delhi, India’s presidency is already a resounding success. For emphasizing inclusive global growth and becoming the voice of nations that have been cast aside in the decades of globalization and have not found a seat at the high table, for stressing on sustainable development goals, for championing the cause of climate justice — funds for developing nations that are being made to pay for their development curve, or for making climate change a mass movement through campaigns such as LIFE (Lifestyle for Environment), or pressing for a reformed multilateral architecture that represents current geopolitical realities — India is showcasing that G20 need not become a conflicted club of bickering powers but a forum to drive real change and illustrate India’s geopolitical ambitions. The message that New Delhi has given so far is that fissures within the G20 members notwithstanding, India’s emergence as a key player in the global order is evident, and New Delhi shall not be held hostage by malevolent actors such as China in derailing its goals. In an interview to news agency PTI published Saturday, asked whether India may be able to help forge a consensus between the G7 nations and China-Russia, the prime minister said: “Whether as G20 president or not, we will support every effort to ensure peace across the world. We recognize that we all have our positions and our perspectives on various global issues. At the same time, we have repeatedly emphasized that a divided world will find it difficult to fight common challenges… “The world is looking at G20 to deliver results on many issues such as growth, development, climate change, pandemics, and disaster resilience, which affect every part of the world. We can all face these challenges better if we are united.” In the same interview, on why India hosted G20 delegates in Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh despite objection from Pakistan and China, Modi replied, “I am surprised that PTI is asking such a question. Such a question would be valid if we had refrained from conducting meetings in those venues… Ours is such a vast, beautiful and diverse nation. When G20 meetings are happening, isn’t it natural that meetings will be held in every part of our country?” In other words, there is a clear indication that if China was trying to make Xi’s presence a bargaining chip to force compromises from India on the ongoing border standoff, perhaps betting on the fact that New Delhi could be arm-twisted to ensure the success of hosting the event, that ploy did not work out. India brushed off China’s “ obstructionism” and simply went ahead with the task. The point is moot, whether this leaves India-China ties in a more precarious state and risk management, becomes harder. For now, India has decided that bilateral friction cannot be allowed to spoil its G20 moment. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views. 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