G20 Summit: In his intervention at the first session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted India's contribution to fight against Covid, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Saturday. PM Modi mentioned India's medical supplies to over 150 countries and spoke about our vision of One Earth, One Health which is essentially collaborative approach in fight against Covid, Shringla said.
The Foreign Secretary said that PM Modi invited G20 countries to make India their partner in economic recovery and supply chain diversification. “He also brought out the fact that despite challenges of the pandemic, India continued to be a trusted partner in context of reliable supply chains," Shringla said.
PM Modi conveyed that India is ready to produce 5 billion vaccine doses by the end of next year. “We also believe that WHO's EUA for Covaxin would felicitate this process of assisting other countries," the Foreign Secretary said.
Shringla informed that AUKUS, a trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, came up during meeting with France President Emmanuel Macron but it was not the major subject. There was no discussion on Quad, he said.
Tomorrow, PM Modi will attend an event hosted by US President Joe Biden on "Supply China Resilience" and hold other bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.
The foreign secretary also informed that Pope Francis has accepted PM Modi's invitation and looking forward to visit India. “The meeting between PM Modi and Pope Francis which was scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted for around an hour," he said.
The last papal visit to India was in 1999 when Pope John Paul II visited the country. Pope Francis has accepted PM Modi's invitation. Shringla said that in his own words, Pope Francis said: "You (PM Modi) have given me the greatest gift. I am looking forward to visiting India."
