In a fresh attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Jairam Ramesh on Thursday alleged that Modi is heading to Italy to attend the G7 Summit to “salvage his diminished international image”.
Taking a swipe at Modi, the veteran Congress leader recalled that former prime minister Manmohan Singh had emerged as the voice of the Global South through substance, not through “hollow self-boasts”.
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Jairam Ramesh’s comments came in the wake of the prime minister’s scheduled visit to Italy on Thursday to attend the three-day G7 summit.
In a post on X, the Congress general secretary in charge of Communications wrote, “The G7 Summit of the heads of state of USA, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, UK and Japan has been taking place since the late 1970s. Between 1997 and 2014, Russia was also a member. Since 2003, India, China, Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa have also been invited to G7 Summits.”
He said, “The most famous of the G7 Summits from India’s point of view was in June 2007 in Heiligendamm, Germany. It was here that the famous Singh-Merkel formula for ensuring equity in global climate change negotiations was first presented to the world. It is still talked about. Dr Manmohan Singh and German Chancellor Angela Merkel created history. Dr Manmohan Singh had emerged as the voice of the Global South through substance and not through hollow self-boasts.”
“Of course, it is too much to expect from our ‘one-third’ Pradhan Mantri (Narendra Modi) to know or acknowledge this history as he flies to Italy today to salvage his diminished international image at this year’s Summit,” he added.
Notably, Modi’s visit to Italy will be his maiden official trip abroad after taking over as the prime minister of India for a third consecutive term.
The G7 Summit is scheduled to be held from 13th June to 15th June in Italy’s Apulia.