"China a multilateral player...": Amitabh Kant

He said China discusses issues of growth, development from its own perspective.

"China is a multilateral player. In multilateral discussions, the issues are very different from bilateral issues and the Chinese discuss issues of growth, and development from their own perspective. The challenge about any multilateral discussion is you have to bring consensus across every issue, every country has veto power. We've been able to work with every single country and bring them on board..." Kant said in a press briefing prior to the G20 Summit.

Kant further said that one of the key takeaways of India's presidency is that the world acknowledges that the country has truly revolutionized technology through the digital public infrastructure.

Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently announced that Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the 18thG20Summit to be held in New Delhi,Indiaon September 9 and 10.

Quoting foreign ministry spokesperson,Mao Ning, the statement read, "At the invitation of the government of the Republic ofIndia, Premier of the State Council Li Qiang will attend the 18thG20Summit to be held in New Delhi,India, on September 9 and 10."

However, no reason was given in the statement about Xi's absence from the summit.

Earlier, Reuters had reported that Chinese PresidentXi Jinpingis likely to skip theG20Summit to be held inIndia.

Sources inChina, two of whom said they were informed by Chinese officials, added they were not aware of the reason for Xis expected absence, according to Reuters.

The Chinese President has made few overseas trips sinceChinaabruptly dropped its Covid restrictions. He, however, attended the BRICS Summit in South Africa last week.

SeveralG20ministerial meetings inIndiaahead of the summit have been contentious as Russia andChinatogether opposed joint statements which included paragraphs condemning Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine last year, according to Reuters.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Xi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit during which he highlightedIndia's concerns over the unresolved issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), in Ladakh.

The two leaders agreed to direct their relevant officials "to intensify efforts at expeditious disengagement and de-escalation".

Along with Xi, Russian President Vladimir Putin will also not attend the summit inIndia.

According to a statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry, Lavrov is expected to attend two plenary sessions on September 9 and 10. Lavrov is scheduled to hold several bilateral talks and contacts on the sidelines of the summit.

Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra has said, "The coming together of the 41 Heads of delegations, Heads of State/Govt, Heads of international organisations in India, starting yesterday is under PM's personal leadership and direction. It is essentially a celebration of the coming together of the G 20 family...This is the largest-ever participation of the Global South in India."

Indiaassumed theG20presidency on December 1 last year and about 200 meetings related toG20were organized in 60 cities across the country.

The 18thG20Summit will be a culmination of all theG20processes and meetings held throughout the year among ministers, senior officials, and civil societies.

One of the takeaways of Indias G20 presidency is the revolutionization of Digital Payment Infrastructure, as initially very few people knew about it, but it has taken forward extensively, G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant said on Friday. (ANI)