India works to bridge language divide at G20 summit over Ukraine war

Its diplomats have the difficult task to arrive at a joint communique for G20 leaders' summit in Delhi in Sept

During a tour of the Virupaksha temple in Hampi, a guide encouraged G20 delegates to make a wish at the sacred stone near the entrance to overcome obstacles during their negotiations. “There are plenty (of obstacles),” responded Indian Sherpa Amitabh Kant, prompting laughter from everyone.

As the sherpas, or chief negotiators, started discussing the draft joint communique in Hampi, India’s G20 presidency entered its most critical phase. In early July, the first draft communique was circulated to the members, based on which 17 hours of grueling co-drafting sessions were conducted at the scenic World Heritage Site in Karnataka. India plans to circulate a second draft before the end of July, after incorporating the changes put forward by members. Sherpas will meet one last time in Manesar, Haryana, in early September before the leaders gather on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi to approve or disapprove a joint communique.

India played a crucial role in bringing out a joint communique at the last year’s G20 meeting in Bali, Indonesia. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pronouncement that “today’s era must not be of war” was accepted by all members, including Russia. However, Russia believes the situation has now changed from what it was during the Bali summit last year as the Western countries are involved in the Ukraine conflict by supporting its enemy with arms and ammunition. On the other hand, the G7 countries want stronger condemnation of Russia for the Ukraine war but are willing to settle for the Bali language.

“Bali (language) needs to be the starting point. There are some important elements in Bali, like the statement on nuclear inadmissibility, which are key,” said a G20 delegate close to the thinking of the US side.

China, on the other hand, in the recently concluded Finance Track meeting, said that G20 “is not the right forum to discuss geopolitical issues.”

India’s diplomacy

India is treading the path carefully and tactfully. It is not insisting on a joint communique at the ministerial levels, settling for chair summaries to avoid a situation where its presidency is taken over by the Russia-Ukraine war dispute. At Hampi, it avoided discussions on the Ukraine war at the group level, while trying to gauge each country’s position bilaterally and through ‘sofa talks’.

“It (the Russia-Ukraine war) is not a priority for us. Our priority is developmental issues. That is why we will discuss it right at the end,” Kant told the media in Hampi.

Indian diplomats maintain a tough posture in public but privately they are anxious about building a consensus. In case G20 members fail to agree on a common language on the Russia-Ukraine war, it will be the first time since 2008 that a summit of the group’s leaders won’t have a joint communique. India, which has made its presidency a prestige issue, would not like such an outcome.

While a joint communique at G20 is not legally binding, unlike bilateral, plurilateral, or multilateral agreements, it is the common minimum agenda agreed upon by all members and often paves the way for future multilateral agreements. A “chair’s summary”, on the other hand, summarises the discussions, highlighting the key decisions made but signals a lack of consensus on contentious issues. Such a statement is the weakest document from a summit and it reflects the personal views of the chair and can’t claim to be summarising the discussions.

“There is a lot of hope for a joint communique. I will even bet on it. Some heavy lifting may be required. Ground for that needs to be prepared. We understand that if we don’t make any reference about the Ukraine war, then there might not be any outcome,” said an Indian G20 diplomat.

He conceded that things could dramatically change at the last minute. After leaders arrived at the G20 summit in Bali last year, a missile hit a village in Poland amid suspicion that it may have originated from Russia. The G-7 countries came to huddle but things calmed down after it emerged that the missile had not originated from Russia. “Had the missile come from Russia, there might not have been a joint communique at Bali,” the official added.

While a clear path to a consensus paragraph on the Russia-Ukraine war is not in sight yet, Indian diplomats have readied close to half a dozen options to drive a consensus. The past declarations may serve as reference points.

The G7 summit in May mentioned Russia 23 times and strongly condemned the country for invading Ukraine. However, the Quad summit, which was held on the sidelines of the G7 meeting, agreed to a more moderate language because India is part of the four-member group. The India-US joint statement during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US did not mention Russia. “That’s why we see scope for reconciliation. Eventually, when it really becomes critically important, we don’t see why a communique should not come,” said a second Indian diplomat.

“The joint communique needs to have an inclusive para on the Russia-Ukraine war with a diversity of views. We can’t make everybody happy through the joint communique. The idea is to make everybody equally unhappy,” the first Indian diplomat quipped.