Israel, Hamas War: PM Modi Seeks Stability

New Delhi: At the conclusion of the G-20 summit hosted by India in virtual mode on Wednesday evening, which prominently discussed both the Israel-Hamas conflict and the G-20 development agenda in its deliberations, including progress on the G-20 agenda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pitched for a two-state solution as a permanent settlement of the Israel-Palestine issue. 

Addressing the G-20 grouping, the Prime Minister said that while there is "zero tolerance for terrorism", the deaths of civilians in the conflict are "condemnable", particularly those of women and children.

Welcoming news about the release of hostages and a "humanitarian pause" to the conflict in his remarks, Mr Modi said that the Israel-Hamas conflict should not assume a regional form and dimension, adding that "one family" (humanity) has the strength to work for peace.

During his address, the Prime Minister advocated for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the situation, adding that humanitarian assistance should "safely" reach the people in dire need of it.

Mr Modi also batted for a development agenda and proposed the formation of a social impact fund for digital public infrastructure (DPI) in the Global South (developing nations), in which he said India will make an initial contribution of $25 million.

He added that the decision taken by the G-20 for a repository had now fructified and that 50 DPIs from 16 countries are now part of the repository.

The Prime Minister also proposed a global framework for artificial intelligence (AI) and warned against its misuse. He said "deepfakes" are a threat to all and announced that India will host an AI partnership summit next month.

On the global efforts for women's empowerment, Mr Modi told the grouping how a historic decision had been taken by India in the first session in its new Parliament building to reserve 33 per cent (one-third) of seats in Parliament and state Assemblies for women.

The Prime Minister pledged that the G-20 will work towards the concerns of the Global South on issues such as food and health security.

While speaking about the reform of multilateral institutions, Mr Modi said in his closing remarks that there will be "just, easy and affordable climate finance" and also "transparency in debt restructuring", two issues of importance to developing nations.

The Prime Minister also spoke about the need for implementation of the action plan for the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He also spoke about the efforts to combat climate change and referred to the global biofuels alliance in this context.

Later, at a media briefing, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar said that while an "overwhelming" number of G-20 members supported a two-state solution, there was no consensus on it.

Mr Jaishankar said that all 21 G-20 members, including the African Union, as well as the nine guest countries and representatives of international organisations, attended the summit.

The summit was attended by leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

He added that all had congratulated Mr Modi on the success of India's G-20 presidency, which ends on November 30.

Mr Jaishankar said that the Ukraine issue was also raised at the summit by some members.

In his remarks, Mr Putin rejected criticism of Russia by some G-20 nations in the context of the Ukraine conflict and said, "Russia has never refused peace negotiations with Ukraine".