As US president Barack Obama met India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the gala dinner for G-20 leaders hosted in Canberra by Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, the American leader could not but help remark to the Indian leader: “You are a man of action.”
In speaking thus, President Obama was possibly speaking not just for himself but for the galaxy of world leaders gathered for the G-20 Summit in the Australian capital as they queue up to have a bilateral meeting with Mr Modi, the most sought after leader at the G20 power pack gathering.
For the world is eager to engage with the new Modi-led government in the hope that it will take swift and clear decisions, particularly in the economic arena from which numerous countries stand to benefit.
The diplomatic outreach by world leaders to the Indian prime minister was clearly evident on the margins of the G-20 multilateral meet on November 15. And not merely because for many among them it was their first opportunity to touch base with the new Indian leader but also because Mr Modi for now is perceived as a “doer”.
Diplomatic Swing: Obama, Putin, Hollande, Harper
Coupled with his promise of an agenda focusing on growth, what has fuelled the world’s hopes is that Mr Modi leads a majority government that will not find its diplomatic initiatives scuttled or hampered by difficult or unyielding coalition partners.
Among the leaders whom Mr Modi met informally and had a quick chat with on the opening day of G-20 were President Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr Modi will be holding full-spectrum talks with the Russian leader next month in New Delhi.
Mr Modi also had bilateral meetings with French President Francois Hollande and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. President Hollande told Mr Modi that France is keen to enhance economic cooperation and that he looks towards meeting him in Paris next year. Mr Modi, in turn, told him that success against global terror is within reach if countries adopt a common strategy.
France is among the countries that would be hoping that a decisive Modi government would see the multi-billion dollar MMRCA (multi-medium role combat aircraft) deal inked swiftly.
During his meeting with the Canadian leader, Mr Modi told him that good relations with his country are a priority for India.
Mr Modi also met for the first time Saudi Crown Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on the sidelines of G-20 and met yet again South African president Jacob Zuma whose country, like Russia is a part of the Brics grouping.
Modi, the story-teller:
For a few moments, a tiny koala was there too brought in by a handler, seeking Mr Modi’s attention as he stood chatting with his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott.
With a significant part of diplomacy also being about the personal chemistry world leaders share, Mr Modi also pulled out of his hat an India-US-Australia `link’ as he chatted with Mr Abbott and President Obama on the margins of G-20.
The PMO tweeted that Mr Modi shared with these two leaders the story of Walter Burley Griffin, a renowned American architect who designed the city of Canberra and spent the last few months of his life in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state. His final resting place is at the Lucknow Christian Cemetery in the city of nawabs.
Modi-Abe dinner diplomacy
The world also got an indication of the growing warmth in ties between not just New Delhi and Tokyo but the personal chemistry shared between Mr Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe when the latter hosted a dinner for Mr Modi in Canberra on the eve of G-20.
The two leaders, as has been their wont in the past, exchanged tweets indicating their rapport with Mr Abe tweeting, “PM Modi, it’s great seeing you again here in Brisbane.” Mr Modi, in turn, tweeted, “Really enjoyed dinner, discussing the Japan-India relationship and global issues.” And that he couldn’t have had a better way to end the day than to have dinner with “my friend” Shinzo Abe and telling him another tweet, “It’s always a delight to interact with you.”
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