Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina for the 2018 G20 summit, which is scheduled to begin today. The theme of the G20 summit is Building Consensus for a Fair and Sustainable Development. The Prime Minister said on Tuesday that he would be discussing ways to meet the new and upcoming challenges of the coming decade with world leaders who will gather for the summit. In his departure statement issued in New Delhi, PM Modi said through the 10 years of its existence, the G-20 had strived to promote stable and sustainable global growth.
"This objective is of particular significance for developing countries and emerging economies such as India, which is today the fastest growing large economy in the world," he said. PM Modi said the participants will discuss the situation of the global economy, international finance and tax systems, women empowerment and the future of work.
"I will highlight the need for reformed multilateralism which reflects the contemporary realities and can effectively strengthen collective action for global good," PM Modi said. "I look forward to meeting leaders from other G-20 countries to review the work of G-20 in the last ten years of its existence and chart the ways and means to meet the new and upcoming challenges of the coming decade," he added.
The foreign ministry said in a statement that PM Modi would meet Chinese president Xi Jinping and German chancellor Angela Merkel on the sidelines of the event.
US President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will all be attending the summit as well. The presence of the Saudi crown prince could make for some awkwardness, amid the backdrop of the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as Argentina has a remarkably broad human rights agenda baked into the country's post-dictatorship constitution.