Antonio Guterres had earlier visited India in his first term on October 1-4, 2018. (File)
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who will begin a visit to India on Tuesday, has said that he is taking with him a "strong message" on strengthening India's role in global multilateral institutions.
Mr Guterres will be on an official trip to India from October 18 to 20, his first visit to India during his second term in office that commenced in January this year. Mr Guterres had earlier visited India in his first term as Secretary General on October 1-4, 2018.
In an interview to PTI ahead of the visit, Mr Guterres said that he is taking "a message of solidarity with the people of India on the 75th anniversary of Independence and at the same time, a strong message on strengthening India's role in our multilateral institutions".
"I am supportive of the idea that we will only have more peace and more justice and equality in the world if we move into a multi-polar world because only with true multipolarity, we can also have forms of democratic, multilateral governance," he said.
"And I think India has a key role to play in the build-up of this multi-polar world and my main message to the Indian leadership is exactly to assume India's role, helping to create this multi-polar world, a world based on the values of the UN Charter, a world in which peace, justice, equality will be possible to make a reality," he said.
Mr Guterres said unfortunately "today, we live in a world full of conflicts, where inequalities are growing tremendously and where humankind has created conditions to lose control in relation to the climate and to threaten the very existence of our planet."
A statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi said that Mr Guterres will commence his visit to India by paying tributes to the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai.
Mr Guterress will also deliver a public address at IIT Mumbai on 'India @75: UN-India Partnership: Strengthening South-South Cooperation'.
The UN chief will join Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 20 in Ekta Nagar, Kevadiya, Gujarat at the launch of the Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) booklet, logo and tagline.
In Kevadiya, Mr Guterres is expected to pay floral tributes at the Statue of Unity. He will also be visiting India's first solar-powered village in Modhera (Gujarat) and other development projects in the area. Mr Guterres would also be visiting the Sun Temple in Modhera.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar would hold bilateral discussions with Mr Guterres on issues of global concern, steps to deepen India's engagement with the UN, including through India's upcoming Presidency of the G20 and reformed multilateralism.
The MEA statement said that Mission LiFE will be India's signature initiative at the United Nations and other international platforms for showcasing climate action and early achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Its central idea reflects India's ethos of respect for Mother Nature and aims at piloting a focussed program that will mobilise one billion Indians to become pro-planet people (3P), who would practice simple environment and climate friendly behaviour/actions in their daily lives to promote a shared commitment to protect our planet.
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