Celebrating Unity: India’s Role in the G-77 Plus China Summit
financialexpress.comIndia has decided to make a change in its plans for the ‘G-77 plus China’ summit. Originally, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar was set to lead the Indian delegation to Cuba for this significant event. However, due to a special parliamentary session scheduled for September 18, all government ministers, including Jaishankar, must be in New Delhi.
As a result of this change, Secretary (west) Sanjay Varma from the Ministry of External Affairs is now leading the Indian delegation to Havana. It’s interesting to note that this would have been Jaishankar’s first visit to Cuba since becoming the foreign minister.
The ‘G-77 plus China‘ summit, taking place in Havana from September 15 to 16, is a gathering of developing nations. This group has grown over the years and currently includes 134 member countries. They hold considerable influence within the United Nations, forming the largest bloc of nations. The presidency of this group rotates, and India has previously held this position when it was the first president of the G-77 in New York.
Although China is not an official member, it often aligns itself politically with this group, leading to the commonly used term ‘G-77 plus China’ in official statements on various international platforms. Due to its loose structure, high-level summits like the one in Havana, involving heads of state, government officials, and foreign ministers, are not very common.
The unexpected announcement of the special parliamentary session disrupted Jaishankar’s plans. He had publicly expressed his intention to visit Cuba during a speech at the CII India-LAC conclave on August 3. His presence at the Cuba summit could have emphasized India’s role as a representative of the Global South. This
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