G20 Summit: PM Modi announces adoption of New Delhi Leaders' Declaration

Consensus on the Leaders' Declaration comes on the first day of the G20 Summit itself.

Members of the G20 have reached a consensus on a joint statement, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 9 announcing the adoption of the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration.

"I have received good news. Due to the hard work of our team, consensus has been built on New Delhi G20 Leaders' Summit Declaration," Modi said to applause, following which his proposal to adopt the declaration was accepted.

Surprisingly, the agreement has been reached halfway through the first day itself of the two-day G20 Leaders' Summit being held in New Delhi.

The adoption of a Leaders' Declaration comes after intense speculation as to whether India would be able to bring together the different factions of the G20 and agree on the language to describe the contentious issue of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The world's leading countries such as the US have pushed for a deep condemnation of Russia's aggression, while Moscow has refused to back down and said it will oppose any joint statement that does not reflect its views.

However, the impasse seems to have been broken, hours after Modi said in his opening remarks earlier today on September 9 that the trust deficit plaguing the world should be turned into mutual faith and belief.

"Historical & Path breaking #G20 Declaration with 100% consensus on all developmental and geo-political issues. The new geopolitical paras are a powerful call for Planet, People, Peace and Prosperity in todays world . Demonstrates PM @narendramodi leadership in today's world," Amitabh Kant, India's G20 Sherpa, said on X, formerly Twitter.

Details on the exact language used in the declaration are awaited.

A joint statement will be a big shot in the arm for India, which has struggled to issue a communique after any of its key ministerial meetings during its G20 Presidency, with Russia and China dissenting on the nature of the language used to describe the conflict in Europe and its implications. This forced India to instead issue a Chair's Summary and Outcome Document over the last several month, which was widely seen as a blot on its Presidency.

Modi, meanwhile, also announced the launch of the Global Biofuel Alliance on September 9 and urged G20 nations to join the initiative, with a plea to take ethanol blending with petrol globally to 20 percent.