PM Modi to come face to face with Trudeau at G7, may take up separatist issue

NEW DELHI: With PM Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau set to come face to face at the G7 summit in Italy on Friday, the govt reiterated that India’s main issue with Canada remained the political space given to anti-India elements who advocate violence and extremism.PM Modi will arrive in Italy on Thursday for what will be his fifth consecutive participation in the summit of the economically most advanced nations as the leader of an invitee country. He will look to address issues related to the Global South while underlining the significance of dialogue and diplomacy for resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict, an issue high on the G7 agenda along with the Gaza conflict.The PM will participate in the G7 outreach session on Friday and is also expected to have many bilateral meetings with G7 and other invitee leaders. Foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra on Wednesday only confirmed a meeting with Italian PM and host Giorgia Meloni, as he said the list of bilateral meetings was still being finalised. A meeting with Trudeau wasn’t ruled out.“The main issue is the political space that Canada provides to anti-India elements that advocate extremism and violence. We have repeatedly conveyed our concerns to them and we expect them to take strong action,” Kwatra said, briefing reporters about Modi’s G7 visit.The summit is being held in a luxury resort in the southern region of Puglia. As expected, Modi will skip the peace summit on Ukraine in Switzerland and return straight to India. India will be represented by senior officials at the summit.Asked about the focus on Russia-Ukraine conflict, Kwatra said India has always maintained that dialogue and diplomacy is the best option. He recalled Modi’s remark in Sep 2022 before Russian President Vladimir Putin that “today’s era is not of war”.Kwatra spoke about the consequences of the war, including its derivative impact on food, fuel and fertiliser availability, challenges to global supply chains and disruptions in the global economy. “We have always been in the forefront to talk about not just the conflict, the need for dialogue and diplomacy but also the way the conflict is impacting the priorities and interests of developing countries,” he said.”We have always been at the forefront to offer assistance wherever we can to alleviate challenges faced by the Global South because of the conflict, also humanitarian assistance to Ukraine,” he added.The foreign secretary said India would continue to share its perspective with world leaders on the sidelines of the summit and continue to emphasise and underline the importance of dialogue and diplomacy to address the situation. According to Kwatra, the G7 summit would also provide a timely opportunity to follow up on outcomes of the G20 summit held under India’s presidency last year and deliberate on issues which are significant for the Global South.