Asserting that “today’s era must not be of war”, the New Delhi Declaration of G20 countries on Saturday called on all states to uphold the principles of international law, including territorial integrity and sovereignty and pitched for initiatives for “comprehensive, just, and durable peace in Ukraine”. “The use or threat …
Read More »G20 to become G21 as world leaders agree to grant African Union permanent membership
The African Union has been granted permanent membership to the G20, host nation India has announced, in an historic expansion of the economic bloc. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi invited the president of the 55-member African Union (AU) to take a seat at the table among permanent members at the …
Read More »G20 Summit: Is India breaking up with Russia?
As Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine in February 2022, marking the start of Europe’s biggest war since World War II, countries around the world came under pressure to choose between the Western-backed Kyiv on the one hand and Moscow on the other. For more than 18 months since then, New …
Read More »China to boycott G-20 meet in Kashmir, calls it disputed region
China has said it will not attend next week’s G-20 tourism group meeting scheduled to take place in Himalayan state of Jammu and Kashmir. “China firmly opposes holding any form of G20 meetings on disputed territory. We will not attend such meetings,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at …
Read More »No plans to meet Russian, Chinese counterparts at Delhi G20 meetings: Blinken
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that he has no plans to meet either the foreign ministers of Russia or of China during the Group of 20 (G20) meeting in New Delhi. Blinken was on a brief tour of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and will head to the …
Read More »Russia, China block condemnation of Ukraine War at G20 summit
Air raid alerts continued nationwide in Ukraine Saturday, as Russia and China blocked a statement from the G20 condemning the war, amid new saber-rattling from a Putin ally. Finance leaders and central bank chiefs from the world’s largest economies meeting in India strongly condemned Moscow for the invasion a year …
Read More »Russia’s Putin won’t attend G20 summit to be held in Rome in person
Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the G20 summit in Rome in person this month due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic, but will take part in it via video link, the Kremlin said on Tuesday. The Kremlin said Putin informed Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi about his plans …
Read More »We should avoid imposing new COVID-19 restrictions: G20 presidency
Italy’s economy minister Daniele Franco said on Saturday virus variants were a major source of concern for the global economy but the world should avoid imposing new restrictions on people’s lives to combat the pandemic. “The only answer is vaccination,” said Franco, speaking at the end of a meeting of …
Read More »G7 nations near historic deal on taxing multinationals
Group of Seven rich nations will seek to overcome long-standing differences on Saturday and strike a landmark deal to close the net on large companies that they say do not pay enough tax. The proposed accord, which could form the basis of a global pact next month, is aimed at …
Read More »At G20, Germany pledges 3 billion euros for poor countries
Germany pledged 3 billion euros ($3.4 billion) at a meeting of G20 finance ministers to help the world’s poorest countries, the finance ministry said on Saturday. The funds will be made available as long-term loans for the International Monetary Fund’s Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust (PRGT). In April, IMF officials …
Read More »Dispute between Japan and South Korea overshadows G20 meetings.
Japan seized the last event of its G20 presidency on Friday to reject a South Korean warning about radiation from the ruined Fukushima nuclear plant as a dispute between the neighbors threatened to overshadow the meetings. Foreign ministers from the Group of 20 (G20) nations gathered in the central Japanese …
Read More »Dutch queen criticized over meeting with the Saudi prince.
A United Nations official on Saturday joined Dutch lawmakers in criticizing Queen Maxima over a meeting she held with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Osaka this week. U.N. rapporteur on extrajudicial executions Agnes Callamard told newspaper Algemeen Dagblad it was “more …
Read More »Trump offers North Korea’s Kim weekend meeting in the demilitarized zone.
US President Donald Trump on Saturday proposed a weekend meeting with Kim Jong Un at the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea, an encounter North Korea said would be meaningful if it goes ahead. If Trump and Kim do meet, it will be for the third time in …
Read More »Trump and Xi agree to restart US-China trade talks.
The US and China have agreed to resume trade talks, easing a long row that has contributed to a global economic slowdown. US President Donald Trump and China’s President Xi Jinping reached an agreement at the G20 summit in Japan. Trump also said he would allow US companies to continue …
Read More »Trump jokes to Putin: Don’t meddle in elections.
US President Donald Trump has appeared to make light of Russian election interference during a meeting with the country’s leader, Vladimir Putin. A smirking Trump wagged his finger at the Russian president and said: “Don’t meddle in the election, please.” The pair were holding talks on the sidelines of the …
Read More »Nearly 40kg of cocaine found in Brazilian president entourage plane.
He is the controversial Brazilian president who has promised zero tolerance on the country’s pervasive drugs trade – but it seems Jair Bolsonaro will need to start with his own entourage. A member of his official military detail has been arrested on route to this week’s G20 summit in Japan …
Read More »Trump: If US is attacked, Japan can ‘watch it on the Sony television!’
US President Donald Trump again lamented what he views as an unequal military alliance Wednesday, claiming that if the US is attacked, Japan “doesn’t have to help us at all” and “can watch it on the Sony television.” Trump’s criticism of Japan came during an interview with on Fox Business …
Read More »Angela Merkel has seen shaking for the second time in weeks.
Angela Merkel has been seen shaking in public for the second time in less than two weeks, raising concern over the wellbeing of the German chancellor. Merkel, 64, appeared to clutch her arms together to keep herself still as she attended an event with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Thursday. …
Read More »Xi to make first official North Korea visit.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will arrive in North Korea on Thursday for a two-day state visit, his first official trip to the country since he came to power in 2012. Xi is making the trip “at the invitation” of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Xinhua reported Monday. North Korean …
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