French President Emmanuel Macron on the final day of G20 Summit thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “words of peace” during India’s presidency and said that the Delhi Declaration confirmed Russia’s isolation.
"I thank PM Modi. Faithful to its principles India did its utmost for the G-20 presidency to serve unity and peace and send across the message of unity while Russia is still waging its aggression on Ukraine," Macron said.
“The G20 Summit committed to just and lasting peace in Ukraine,” he added.
Macron, who held bilateral talks with PM Modi this afternoon, highlighted how the Group of 20 talked about upholding principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity of States. “We support deep reform of international institutions to reflect current reality of world,” Macron said.
However, he added that G20 should not get stuck on political issues like the Ukraine conflict. "G20 not a forum for political discussions, vast majority of G20 countries condemned Russian invasion of Ukraine," he said.
The bilateral talks were held after the conclusion of the Summit. France and India share close ties and strategic partnership.
Modi posted on X (formerly Twitter), "A very productive lunch meeting with President Emmanuel Macron. We discussed a series of topics and look forward to ensuring India-France relations scale new heights of progress."
Earlier today, Modi formally handed over the customary gavel of the G20 chair to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and proposed a virtual summit by November to take stock of initiatives taken during the Indian Presidency.
Brazil will formally assume the G20 Presidency on December 1 this year.
