G20 declaration calls for peace, seeks revival of Black Sea grain deal

NEW DELHI: After weeks of hectic negotiations, members of the G20 finally reached a common language for the Ukraine war on Saturday to avert the ongoing summit ending up without any declaration. The G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration reiterated PM Modi’s suggestion to Russian President Vladimir Putin: This is not an era of war.

The declaration document, accessed by The New Indian, does not condemn Russia for invading Ukraine last year, but underscores that “all states must act in a manner consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the UN Charter in its entirety”.

“We note with deep concern the immense human suffering and the adverse impact of wars and conflicts around the world,” it reads.

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While reiterating their national position, the G20 leaders said, “In line with the UN Charter, all states must refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state.”

The G20 leaders, who represent 85 per cent of the global economy, said the use or threat of using “nuclear weapons is inadmissible”.

They agreed that the G20 “is not the platform to resolve geopolitical and security issues” but said that issues posed by the Ukraine-Russia war can have significant consequences for the global economy.

“We highlighted the human suffering and negative added impacts of the war in Ukraine with regard to global food and energy security, supply chains, macro-financial stability, inflation and growth, which has complicated the policy environment for countries, especially developing and least developed countries which are still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic disruption which has derailed progress towards the SDGs,” the document reads.

However, there were different views and assessments with regard to the impact of the Ukraine war.

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For the second time, PM Narendra Modi’s suggestion to Russian president Vladimir Putin about the war in the modern world has found mention in the G20 declaration.

“Today’s era must not be of war”, said the Delhi Declaration.

In September last year, PM Modi told his Russian counterpart at the SCO Summit in Samarkand: “This is not an era of war.”

The leaders also called on Russia to revive the Black Sea grain deal, which allowed movement of food grains from the ports of Russia and Ukraine. The deal, brokered by Turkiye and UK, lapsed in June.

“In this context, emphasizing the importance of sustaining food and energy security, we called for the cessation of military destruction or other attacks on relevant infrastructure. We also expressed deep concern about the adverse impact that conflicts have on the security of civilians thereby exacerbating existing socio-economic fragilities and vulnerabilities and hindering an effective humanitarian response.”