UK invites India to attend G7 summit, scheduled to be held in Cornwall from June 11-13, as a guest

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to attend the G7 summit, scheduled to be held in Cornwall from June 11-13, as a guest by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

“The UK will use the G7 Presidency to unite leading democracies to help the world build back better from coronavirus and create a greener, more prosperous future,” said a press statement issued by the British High Commission.

The G7 – which is made up of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the USA and the EU – is the only forum where the world’s most influential and open societies and advanced economies are brought together for close-knit discussions.

“This year the UK has also invited leaders from India, Australia and South Korea to attend as guest countries to deepen the expertise and experience around the table. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s ambition is to use the G7 to intensify cooperation between the world’s democratic and technologically advanced nations. Between them the 10 leaders represent over 60% of the people living in democracies around the world,” the statement said.

“The invitation to India, Australia and South Korea is testament to the UK’s commitment to ensuring multilateral institutions better reflect today’s world. The UK was the first P5 member to support a permanent UNSC seat for India and the first G7 member to invite India to a G7 Summit in 2005. As current BRICS President and G20 President in 2023, India will play a key role driving in multilateral cooperation helping to build back better around the world,” it added.

Here is the full text of the press statement:

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will use the first in-person G7 summit in almost two years to ask leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to seize the opportunity to build back better from coronavirus, uniting to make the future fairer, greener and more prosperous.

Prime Ministers and Presidents from the world’s leading democracies will come together in the UK in June to address shared challenges, from beating coronavirus and tackling climate change, to ensuring that people everywhere can benefit from open trade, technological change and scientific discovery.

The G7 – which is made up of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the USA and the EU – is the only forum where the world’s most influential and open societies and advanced economies are brought together for close-knit discussions.

This year the UK has also invited leaders from India, Australia and South Korea to attend as guest countries to deepen the expertise and experience around the table. The Prime Minister’s ambition is to use the G7 to intensify cooperation between the world’s democratic and technologically advanced nations. Between them the 10 leaders represent over 60% of the people living in democracies around the world.

As ‘pharmacy of the world’, India already supplies more than 50% of the world’s vaccines, and the UK and India have worked closely together throughout the pandemic. Our Prime Ministers speak regularly and Prime Minister Johnson has said he will visit India ahead of the G7.

The invitation to India, Australia and South Korea is testament to the UK’s commitment to ensuring multilateral institutions better reflect today’s world. The UK was the first P5 member to support a permanent UNSC seat for India and the first G7 member to invite India to a G7 Summit in 2005. As current BRICS President and G20 President in 2023, India will play a key role driving in multilateral cooperation helping to build back better around the world.

The UK will also host a number of meetings throughout the year between Government Ministers from the G7, both virtually and in different locations across the UK. These ministerial summits will cover economic, environmental, health, trade, technology, development and foreign policy issues.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “As the most prominent grouping of democratic countries, the G7 has long been the catalyst for decisive international action to tackle the greatest challenges we face. From cancelling developing world debt to our universal condemnation of Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the world has looked to the G7 to apply our shared values and diplomatic might to create a more open and prosperous planet.

“Coronavirus is doubtless the most destructive force we have seen for generations and the greatest test of the modern world order we have experienced. It is only right that we approach the challenge of building back better by uniting with a spirit of openness to create a better future.”

2021 marks a crucial year of international leadership for the UK. In addition to the G7 Summit, during February the UK will assume the Presidency of the UN Security Council, and later this year the UK will host COP26 in Glasgow and a global education conference aimed at getting children in the developing world into school.