New Delhi: In what has raised eyebrows, a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Donald Trump is yet to be scheduled due to scheduling constraints on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Argentina.
However, a bilateral meeting between the Prime Minister and Chinese President Xi Jinping and one between Mr Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron has been scheduled and will probably take place on November 29.
The G-20 Summit will take place in Buenos Aires on November 30 and December 1.
Mr Modi, apart from speaking on several global issues, is also expected to speak about his government’s pro-poor flagship programmes at the summit.
Sources said a meeting between Mr Modi and President Trump has not been scheduled so far, with Mr Modi wanting to return to India on December 2 itself in view of political engagements ahead of the crucial Assembly polls in India in a few states. It may be recalled that New Delhi had been keen that President Trump be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day parade celebrations on January 26, 2019, but the US President had pressing domestic engagements scheduled at that time due to which the US had conveyed that he would not be able to visit India at that time.
Meanwhile, so far as the G-20 Summit is concerned, Mr Modi is expected to speak about his government’s flagship programmes as well as economic reforms undertaken such as GST, Mudra Yojana, Start-up India and Ayushman Bharat healthcare project. The Modi government’s initiatives on a digital economy may also find mention.
Foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale said there would be three main sessions at the summit in which the first will be on the topic “Putting people first”. Mr Modi will make a “lead intervention” in this session. The second session will be on “Building Consensus” and will discuss issues such as trade, taxation and climate change. The third session will be on “Opportunities” and will discuss issues such as food security. Mr Modi may make some “interventions” at these sessions too.
