Spanish Foreign Affairs Minister arrives for G20 Summit

NEW DELHI: Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares Bueno on Saturday morning arrived in the national capital to attend the two-day G20 Summit that begins here today.

Jose Manuel Albares Bueno is attending the G20 Summit on behalf of Spain's President Pedro Sanchez, who tested COVID positive recently. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Sanchez said, "This afternoon I have tested positive for COVID and will not be able to travel to New Delhi for the G20 Summit. I feel fine."

Apart from Sanchez, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin are other two leaders who are not attending the G20 Summit in person. The G20 Summit is being held at the newly inaugurated Bharat Mandapam. This is the first time that the G20 Summit is taking place under India’s presidency. The event will be graced by many global leaders and delegates.

Extensive preparations and arrangements have been made for the summit, with the intention of showcasing both India’s soft power as well as modern face. Formed in 1999, the G20 was formed to maintain global financial stability by incorporating middle-income countries. India assumed the G20 presidency on December 1 last year and about 200 meetings related to G20 were organized in 60 cities across the country.

The 18th G20 Summit in New Delhi will be a culmination of all the G20 processes and meetings held throughout the year among ministers, senior officials, and civil societies.

A G20 Leaders’ declaration will be adopted at the conclusion of the Summit, stating Leaders’ commitment towards the priorities discussed and agreed upon during the respective ministerial and working group meetings. The next G20 presidency is going to be taken over by Brazil in 2024, followed by South Africa in 2025.