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Global attention turns to the French resort town of Evian next week for the 52nd G7 Summit. The summit would formally commence on Monday with a dinner hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron for G7 leaders and representatives of the European Union. The G7 Summit, to be held under the French presidency, is expected to focus on geopolitical crises, economic cooperation, artificial intelligence, and developmental partnerships.
According to sources, the first day of the summit on Tuesday will include a session on Ukraine in the presence of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, followed by discussions involving Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. The outreach session on "Tackling the Global Imbalances" will bring together invited countries such as India, Kenya, South Korea and Brazil to deliberate on reducing macroeconomic disparities and promoting balanced growth. Sources underlined three key words for the summit- concrete measures, reconvergence and international action on ongoing crises. "First, a G7 of concrete measures, including measures on AI, including measures on protection of childhood online, and including measures on cancer, where you need a lot of cooperation," the source said. The second theme, "reconvergence", focuses on reducing global macroeconomic imbalances through greater coordination among nations and international institutions. "Our thinking on that is that when you take every part into account, there are global imbalances that can be mortal for every region. We need to have this discussion, including the IMF, including the World Bank and international institutions, to first agree on a consensus on the situation and, second, agree on possible measures that can be taken at the G7, or later at the G20," the source added. The third priority, according to the source, would be international action on contemporary crises, including the conflict in Ukraine and the escalating tensions in West Asia involving Iran, Israel, Gaza, Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz. "The third keyword of our G7 is international action on the crisis of the day. And of course, you'll have a lot of discussions on Ukraine. And as you've seen lately, with Hormuz and Iran, Israel, Gaza, or Lebanon, this would be an important part of the discussion. So here are three messages. Concrete measures, reconvergence, and international action on the crisis,"sources said. Prime Minister Modi will attend the summit at the invitation of President Macron, marking India's 13th participation as a partner country and the Prime Minister's seventh consecutive appearance at the forum. India is set to bring its voice to key discussions on the rapidly evolving situation in the Middle East and the pressing challenge of global economic imbalances on the second day of the summit. New Delhi's participation in the outreach sessions of the summit, despite being a member state, underscores its growing role in shaping conversations on major international issues. Earlier, during a special briefing on Prime Minister Modi's visit, MEA Secretary (West) Sibi George said the summit would provide an opportunity for India to engage with world leaders on issues of significance to both India and the Global South. "The visit will provide an opportunity for the Prime Minister to engage with world leaders present at the summit on issues of importance to India as well as the Global South," George said. He added that the outreach discussions would broadly focus on the renewal of international partnerships and developmental solidarity, fostering shared and balanced growth, and the effective and efficient rollout of artificial intelligence. On the sidelines of the summit, Prime Minister Modi is also expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings with G7 leaders, partner countries and heads of international organisations. Twenty-three years after hosting the 2003 G8 Summit and seven years after the 2019 G7 Summit in Biarritz, France's Evian is once again set to become the centre of global diplomacy as leaders gather to navigate a world grappling with economic uncertainty and multiple geopolitical flashpoints. (ANI)
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