G20 Summit 2023 Delhi Live Updates: Canadian Prime Minister’s plane suffers technical snag

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty spent 45 minutes at the Akshardham Temple here on Sunday morning, offering prayers and learning about its architecture and history, according to temple management officials.

They reached the temple dedicated to Swaminarayan, believed to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, early morning and walked barefoot from the reception area to the main temple complex -- a distance of about 150 metres.

Sunak, who was dressed in a crisp white shirt and navy blue trousers, and his wife, who paired a beige kurta with a bright pink dupatta and loose pants, were accorded a traditional welcome at the temple.

India showcased its diverse musical heritage to the world during the gala dinner hosted by president Droupadi Murmu for the world leaders attending the G20 summit. It witnessed usage of traditional music from all across the country. The key highlight was ‘Gandharva Atodyam’. It is a unique musical medley featuring an exquisite symphony of musical instruments from across Bharat, showcasing Hindustani, Carnatic, Folk and Contemporary music with an ensemble of classical instruments

A bouquet of millets-based vegetarian cuisine by ITC hotel chains is on the menu served for world leaders who have converged in India for the G20 summit.

Two women chefs from ITC Sheraton New Delhi have displayed as many as 20 dishes all prepared from millets. The dishes were inspired by the “Mission Millets” initiative of ITC hotel chains.

The United Nations declared the year 2023 as the International Year of the Millet, following a proposal by India, which wants to position itself as a global hub for Millet.

The dishes that are on the menu of all ITC hotels include some like the Avocado and Pearl Millet Salad as well as Jowar and Jackfruit Haleem which according to ITC were well appreciated by the spouses of the visiting heads of G20 states, including Akshata Murty, the First Lady of the United Kingdom.

Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Sunday hailed India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant for the 'Delhi Declaration' consensus, and said it was a "proud moment for India at G20".

Tagging Kant's remarks in an interview on how the consensus was achieved on the paragraphs on Russia-Ukraine, Tharoor said in a post on X, "Well done @amitabhk87!Looks like the IFS lost an ace diplomat when you opted for the IAS!"

"'Negotiated with Russia, China, only last night got final draft,' says India's G20 Sherpa on 'Delhi Declaration' consensus. A proud moment for India at G20!" Tharoor, a former under secretary-general, said in his post late Saturday night.

United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a record climate aid commitment as the G20 Summit in India nears its commencement, said the British High Commission in India.

The UK will provide USD 2 billion to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) which is the biggest single funding commitment the UK has made to help the world tackle climate change, which was established by 194 countries following the Copenhagen Accord at COP15.

“Uplift makes a significant contribution towards the UK’s pledge to spend 11.6bn Pounds on international climate finance, cementing our global climate leadership. UK continues to show global climate leadership, having cut emissions faster than any other G7 country,” said a release by the British High Commission.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, representing the G20 presidencies of last year and the next year, handed over a sapling each to current chair Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday.

The symbolic ceremony took place at the start of the third session, 'One Future', of the G20 Summit.

First Widodo handed over the sapling to Modi and then Lula da Silva presented the sapling to the prime minister, amidst applause from other leaders.

The G20 leaders summit will draw to a close this afternoon with India handing over the G20 presidency to Brazil.

India on Saturday pulled off a big diplomatic win after the G20 summit adopted a consensus declaration overcoming major differences on the Russia-Ukraine war, as Prime Minister Modi called for ending "global trust deficit".

Modi also announced that the African Union was admitted as G20's permanent member.

The US conceded space to the host India in the wording of the final Delhi Declaration of G20 on Russia's invasion of Ukraine and lauded Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's diplomatic skills that virtually represented a coup as the final document came out despite fractures in the group.

The declaration earned the praise of the US. US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan called the statement a "significant milestone for India's chairmanship and a vote of confidence that the G20 can come together to address a pressing range of issues."

"The G20 statement includes a set of consequential paragraphs on the war in Ukraine. And from our perspective, it does a very good job of standing up for the principle that states cannot use force to seek territorial acquisition," Sullivan told newspersons.

US President Joe Biden on Saturday said that this year's G20 summit has proved that the group can still drive solutions to the most pressing issues of the climate crisis, fragility, and conflict.

Taking to X, US President said, “At a moment when the global economy is suffering from the overlapping shocks of the climate crisis, fragility, and conflict, this year’s Summit proved that the G20 can still drive solutions to our most pressing issues.”

India is hosting the G20 Summit this year in New Delhi on September 9-10.

A tree plantation ceremony will be held at Bharat Mandapam. The leaders will then participate in the third session 'One Future' of the G20 summit.

It took over 200 hours of non-stop negotiations by a team of Indian diplomats to deliver a consensus on the G20 declaration that was adopted at the Leaders' Summit here, India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant said on Sunday.

The team of diplomats, including joint secretaries Eenam Gambhir and K Nagraj Naidu, held 300 bilateral meetings and circulated 15 drafts with their counterparts on the contentious Ukraine conflict to drive home a consensus that was clinched on the first day of the G20 Leaders Summit itself.

"The most complex part of the entire G20 was to bring consensus on the geopolitical paras (Russia-Ukraine). This was done over 200 hours of non-stop negotiations, 300 bilateral meetings, 15 drafts," Kant said.

Ahead of the crucial Day 2 of the G20 Summit security has been stepped up in parts of the national capital on Sunday.According to the Delhi Traffic Police alert, "Police Controlled Zone 2 has been implemented and consequently, buses will not operate on Ring Road between ISBT Kashmiri Gate and Sarai Kale Khan.

Buses will operate on the remaining stretch of Ring Road and the road network beyond Ring Road towards the borders of Delhi.

"Due to traffic regulations in connection with the G20 Summit, commuters travelling to the Airport were requested to take Rao Tula Ram Marg instead of Dhaula Kuan, the alert further stated.It also informed that the other traffic regulations which are already in place since 08.09.23 will continue to remain in force.