Leaders of India, US, Brazil, South Africa hold talks; issue joint statement

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa on Saturday reaffirmed their shared commitment to the G20 as the premier forum for global economic cooperation to deliver tangible solutions.

The four leaders held a meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.

While India is the current president of the G20, Brazil, South Africa, and the United States will hold the charge in the next three years respectively.

Under the collective commitment of its members, the G20 stands resolute in its mission to deliver for global good.

A picture with President @LulaOficial, President @CyrilRamaphosa, @POTUS @JoeBiden and Mr. Ajay Banga. pic.twitter.com/kebAeWshok

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 9, 2023

A joint statement said the leaders vowed to build on the "historic progress" of India's G20 presidency to address global challenges.

"We, the leaders of India, Brazil, South Africa, and the United States, met on the margins of the G20 Leaders' Summit in New Delhi to reaffirm our shared commitment to the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation to deliver solutions for our shared world," it said.

"As the G20's current and next three Presidencies, we will build on the historic progress of India's G20 Presidency to address global challenges," it said.

"In this spirit, together with the World Bank President (Ajay Banga), we welcome the G20's commitment to build better, bigger, and more effective multilateral development banks," it said.

The statement said this commitment "underscores what we can do, by working together through the G20, to support our people toward a better future."

The G20 declaration noted that its leaders are looking forward to meeting again in Brazil in 2024 and South Africa in 2025, as well as in the US in 2026 at the beginning of the next cycle.

"We welcome Saudi Arabia's ambition to advance its turn for hosting the G20 Presidency in the next cycle. We also look forward to the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024 as a symbol of peace, dialogue amongst nations and inclusivity, with participation of all," the summit declaration said.