G20 Summit highlights: President Murmu hosts lavish dinner for leaders, delegates

At least 12 of the 29 flights landed within three-and-a-half hours, with the separation between some flights being as little as under ten minutes, leading to frenetic arrangements to receive and dispatch the dignitaries to their respective hotels.

For example, the prime ministers of Netherlands and Singapore — both of who arrived on commercial flights — landed within six minutes of each other.

Similarly, the presidents of Turkey and Brazil arrived on their special flights within 15 minutes of each other. Dig deeper

The leaders who reached the national capital include US President Joe Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Argentina President Alberto Fernandez and Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also reached India. He had hosted the BRICS summit last month.

Other leaders who arrived in the national capital include Chinese Premiere Li Qiang, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Oman Deputy Prime Minister Asaad bin Tariq bin Taimur, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Egypt President El-Sisi, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Turkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

African Union Chairperson Azali Assoumani, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Argentina President Alberto Angel Fernandez, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Secretary-General, Mathias Cormann, World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also reached Delhi.

India holding the G20 Presidency at this time is a "golden opportunity" and it is ready to make a mark on the global stage, a top official in the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday, asserting that the country is all set for the summit.

In an interview with PTI on the eve of the mega conclave, G20 India Special Secretary Muktesh Pardesi also said the "broad agenda of the summit will revolve around 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' -- One Earth, One Family, One Future".

Many world leaders have already arrived in Delhi on Friday ahead of the summit, including US President Joe Biden. Biden also held wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his arrival.

"It is not only one event (summit), the overall backdrop in the country is positive. We celebrated 75 years of our Independence, we are the fifth largest economy right now, we are the largest democracy. So many things are in favour of India," he said.

US President Joe Biden on Friday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussed issues ranging from defence cooperation, and technology sharing. The US President also congratulated India for the success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission.

The two leaders held bilateral talks at PM residence - 7, Lok Kalyan, Marg in New Delhi, ahead of the G20 Summit over the weekend.

During this, India and the US also settled the seventh and last outstanding World Trade Organisation (WTO) dispute.

Notably, the six previous disputes were resolved during PM Modi's state visit to the US.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., to India today, reaffirming the close and enduring partnership between India and the United States. The leaders expressed their appreciation for the substantial progress underway to implement the ground breaking achievements of Prime Minister Modi’s historic, June 2023, visit to Washington,” the India-US joint statement read.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman hosted a dinner for Finance Ministers of the G20 countries and the heads of international organisations on Friday ahead of the leaders' summit in Delhi.

Internal Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Kristalina Georgieva and World Trade Organisation (WTO) Chief Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala were in attendance at the dinner.

"Smt @nsitharaman hosted the #G20 Finance Ministers and Heads of International Organisations over dinner ahead of the #G20 #LeadersSummit in New Delhi. @g20org #G20India," the office of Nirmala Sitharaman posted on X.

It is the first-ever G20 Summit in India and will be held at Bharat Mandapam in the national capital on September 9 and 10.

As Delhi gears up for the two-day leaders' summit, G20 Special Secretary, Muktesh Pardeshi, on Friday said that one of the advantages of the gala event would be that it will allow India to show that it is "ready to host any kind of event".

“There is a support staff that is reviewing the security and other arrangements. Craftspeople are there who are participating. Managing all of this is a huge organisational scheme. We have been working on it for months. One of the advantages of the G-20 summit would be that we can tell the world that we are ready to organise any kind of event,” Muktesh Pardeshi told ANI while speaking on the arrangements of the event.

Further, speaking on the arrangement for delegates in Bharat Mandapam, the special secretary said that the team is prepared to manage 10,000 people in the summit.

For 2 days from today, the world's top leaders will be gathering at Delhi's sprawling Pragati Maidan for the G20 Summit. To maintain foolproof security arrangements during the G20 Summit, the Delhi Police has barred all online delivery services, except medicines, in the New Delhi district. Dig deeper

Delhi residents woke up to a sudden spell of rains in several parts of the national capital in the early hours of Saturday that brought temperatures down in the city. Delhi is likely to receive light rain in the morning hours on Saturday and Sunday, according to the Regional Meteorological Centre. The maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to be around 37 and 27 degrees Celsius respectively.

"India is delighted to host the 18th G20 Summit on 09-10 September 2023 at New Delhi’s iconic Bharat Mandapam. This is the first ever G20 Summit being hosted by India. I look forward to productive discussions with world leaders over the next two days. It is my firm belief that the the New Delhi G20 Summit will chart a new path in the human-centric and inclusive development," tweets PM Modi ahead of the G20 summit.

At around 7:00 pm today, the dinner hosted by President Droupadi Murmu will take place.

Besides the foreign delegates parliamentarians and ministers in the current Cabinet, the G20 Summit dinner will be attended by some of the former senior leaders of the nation.

US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are among the key leaders who are going to attend the event in the country's capital city.

At a press briefing for the White House press corps travelling with President Joe Biden, Campbell, who is a key architect of the India policy in White House and was present at the meeting between Biden and PM Narendra Modi, also said that India is disappointed that Russia and China aren’t at the G20 Summit.

On the absence of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese president Xi Jinping, Campbell said, “I think it is a disappointment for India that Russia and China aren’t here.” Dig deeper

The theme of this year's G20 Summit, which is taking place under India's presidency is “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth · One Family · One Future” - is drawn from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad. Essentially, the theme affirms the value of all life – human, animal, plant, and microorganisms – and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the wider universe.

At least three Congress chief ministers may skip the G20 dinner to be hosted at Bharat Mandapam on September 9 by President Droupadi Murmu after party chief and the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, was not invited for the banquet. Dig deeper

An ambient advertising campaign titled '50 years of friendship and trust to the shining future of Korea and India' has garnered significant attention as India prepares to host the 18th G20 summit on Saturday.

The G20 summit which is being held under India's presidency this year in New Delhi, will witness the participation of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol as well.

In anticipation of President Yoon Suk Yeol's participation in the India G20 Summit beginning on September 9 and the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and India, the Office of the Overseas Public Relations Secretary organized an ambient advertising campaign titled "50 Years of friendship and trust, to the shining future of Korea and India', according to a statement issued by Korean Embassy.

8:15am to 9am: Arrival of leaders and heads of delegations in their individual motorcades at Rajghat and a signing of the peace wall inside the Leaders' Lounge at Rajghat.

9am to 9:20am: World leaders to lay wreaths at Mahatma Gandhi's Samadhi followed by a live performance of Mahatma Gandhi's favourite devotional songs. Subsequently, leaders and heads of delegations will move to the Bharat Mandapam's Leaders' Lounge.

9:40am to 10:15am: Arrival of leaders and heads of delegation at Bharat Mandapam.

10:15am -10:30am: Tree planting ceremony at Bharat Mandapam's South Plaza.

10:30am to 12:30pm: The third session of the summit, called 'One Future', will take place at the venue followed by the adoption of the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration.

9:30am to 10:30am: Arrival of leaders and heads of delegations at the summit venue, Bharat Mandapam, followed by a welcome photograph with the Prime Minister at Tree of Life Foyer. Subsequently, leaders and heads of delegation assemble in Leaders' Lounge, Level 2 at Bharat Mandapam.

10:30am to 1:30pm: The first session, called 'One Earth,' will take place at the Summit Hall at Bharat Mandapam, followed by a working lunch.

13:30am to 3:30pm: Various bilateral meetings will be held.

3:30pm to 4:45pm: The second session, 'One Family,' will take place in the summit venue after which the leaders return to their hotels.

7pm to 8pm: Arrival of leaders and heads of delegation for dinner, beginning with a welcome photograph on arrival.

8pm to 9pm: During dinner, the leaders will engage in talks over their meal.

9pm to 9:45pm: Leaders and heads of delegation will assemble in the Leaders' Lounge at Bharat Mandapam to bring the day to a close.

With the national capital spruced up and partly emptied of people for the mega world event, the host, India, scrambled for last-minute agreement on vexed issues including the Ukraine war, climate and global governance. Here's the full schedule of G20 Summit 2023. Dig deeper

Negotiations on a draft leaders’ declaration for the G20 Summit were inconclusive on Friday because of differences over the Ukraine conflict and other issues, people familiar with the matter said, adding that a final push by the leaders would be needed to break the impasse. Dig deeper