Pressing for the need to delink terror from religion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said some countries still use terrorism as “an instrument of state policy” and the world must act against radicalisation without any political consideration. Modi said terrorism is the main global challenge today and “from regions in conflict to the streets of distant cities, terrorism extracts a deadly price”. At a dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on “Global Challenges: Terrorism and Migration”, Modi stated that some countries still use terror as “an instrument of state policy” and need to be isolated while terror financing should be criminalised.
In its first communique on a political issue, leaders of the world’s richest and most powerful countries (G20), including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Monday vowed to conduct joint action against growing global terrorism as well as choking terror financing channels. The Antalya Summit is the first time the G-20 engaged in issues other than the economy and trade as world leaders released a statement denouncing the Paris attacks while vowing unity against terrorism.
The joint statement, issued at the end of the two-day G20 Summit, underlined that leaders reaffirmed that terrorism cannot be associated with any religion, nationality or ethnic group. G20 leaders, including US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin, denounced the Paris attacks as “heinous” and reiterated that they would remain united in combating terrorism.
leaders of the world’s 20 biggest economies also pledged to use all policy tools to address uneven economic growth even as they endorsed India’s concern over delays in implementation of IMF reforms, and building a global culture of intolerance towards corruption. The G20 communique said that the member nations will carefully calibrate and communicate monetary policy actions to mitigate uncertainty, minimise negative spillovers and promote transparency. The communique reflected India’s concern on adopting climate change. India has been pressing for convention on climate change which has to be adhered to within the UN framework.
They also noted the scale of the refugee crisis, saying all States need to share the burden, including through refugee resettlement and other forms of humanitarian aid, while underscoring the importance of a political solution.
The leaders vowed to continue to work towards lifting global GDP by an additional 2 per cent by 2018, said the communique issued at the end of the Summit, which was attended by global leaders, including US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the ambitious Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, especially with regard to exchange of information on cross border tax rulings, it said “we strongly urge the timely implementation of the project and encourage all countries and jurisdictions, including developing ones, to participate”.
The G20 leaders also pledged to put in place a system for automatic exchange of information by 2017 or end 2018. “We invite other jurisdictions to join us. We support the efforts for strengthening developing economies’ engagement in the international tax agenda,” it added.
Seeking a transparent and non-discriminatory global trading system, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said all elements of the WTO’s Bali pact should be fully implemented. “It is absolutely vital that the Doha Development Round achieves its goals. All elements of the Bali package should be implemented fully. We look forward to a successful outcome at the Nairobi Meeting in December,” he said.
Modi wrapped up his five-day visit to Britain and Turkey on Monday after making a strong case for a united global fight against terrorism. “Goodbye Turkey! After successful participation in @G20Turkey2015 PM @narendramodi heads home,” External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.
Modi for IMF quota reforms at earliest
Amid clamour for more say of developing nations in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Modi expressed hope that the US would ratify the quota reforms of the multilateral lending agency at the earliest. The Washington-headquartered reviews members’ quotas once in five years and the last such review took place in December, 2010.
Once the review takes effect, India’s share will increase from the current 2.44 per cent to 2.75 per cent, following which the country will become the eighth-largest quota holder at the IMF, up from the 11th position.