PM Modi reached the G20 Summit venue Bharat Mandapam in Pragati Maidan, on Saturday morning, preceding the two-day summit scheduled to begin later today. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, among other officials, accompanied PM Modi to the venue.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director and Chairman Kristalina Georgieva and World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala were among the first to arrive. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina also arrived at the venue soon after. PM Modi welcomed the world leaders against the backdrop of the replica of the Konark Wheel from the Sun temple in Odisha’s Puri. Symbolic of the ‘wheel of democracy’, the Konark Wheel is a 13th- century artefact that epitomises resilience of democratic ideals and commitment to progress in society.
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni were also welcomed by PM Modi. The world leaders walked the red carpet lined with national flags. PM Modi was seen exchanging a word about the Konark Wheel with US President Biden. UK Prime Minister was greeted with a traditional namaste by PM Modi.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa, European Commission President Urusula von der Leyen, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also arrived at the Bharat Mandapam, venue for the two-day summit. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Egypt President Abdel Fattah Saeed Hussein Khalil El-Sisi and Oman Deputy Prime Minister Sayyid Asaad bin Tarik Al Said and Spain's First Vice President Nadia Calvino were also welcomed by PM Modi.
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The first key summit is expected to start at 10:30 am. The three primary summits are based on the themes-One Earth, One Family and One Future.
