Beijing declared on Monday that Chinese President Xi Jinping is likely to boycott this week’s G20 Summit in New Delhi, which is seen as a blow for India’s chairmanship of the important forum for the world’s largest economies.
Premier Li Qiang will attend the summit of world leaders in New Delhi on September 9 and 10, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced without mentioning Xi.
Premier Li Qiang will head a team to the G20 summit in New Delhi, India, according to Mao Ning, a ministry official, who made the announcement at a news conference in Beijing.
“The G20 is a crucial platform for global economic cooperation. China has always given G20 events a lot of attention and participated actively in them, she continued. “We are ready to work with all parties to make the G20 Summit successful and contribute to the steady recovery of the global economy and sustainable development.”
China’s senior official is expected to skip a G20 summit for the first time, which is considered as a blow for India’s year-long G20 presidency.
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With Xi’s anticipated absence, China seems hesitant to support India’s aspirations for the world.
“It’s not like Beijing doesn’t see value in the grouping, but it does not want to be seen endorsing India as a leader of the Global South, which is how the Indian government has pitched its G20 presidency,” Manoj Kewalramani, a fellow in China studies and the director of the Indo-Pacific Studies programs at Takshashila Institution, told Arab News.
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According to Indrani Bagchi, senior diplomatic editor at the Aspen Global Leadership Network, Xi’s absence from a crucial meeting of world leaders could jeopardize China’s position on the international scene.
According to Bagchi, it “reflects very poorly on China’s own approach to the world.” “Not showing up for the second-largest economy in the world is not good for China,” the speaker said.