Joe Biden to visit India in September to attend G20 summit 

US President Joe Biden will visit India from 7-10 September to attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit being hosted in New Delhi, the White House confirmed on Tuesday.

The G20 summit is scheduled to be held from 9-10 September, and it is expected to address pressing global issues including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“President Biden and G20 partners will discuss a range of joint efforts to tackle global issues, including on the clean energy transition and combatting climate change, mitigating the economic and social impacts of Putin’s war in Ukraine,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement. 

While it remains uncertain whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the summit in person, the Kremlin has ruled out the possibility of his visit to New Delhi. Putin has largely avoided international travel due to an outstanding arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for his invasion of Ukraine. He is also notably absent from the ongoing BRICS summit in South Africa. 

It is, however, noteworthy that India is not a member state of the ICC as it has not signed the ‘Rome Statute’.

At the G20 summit, Biden will also discuss increasing the capacity of multilateral development banks, including the World Bank, to better fight poverty, including by addressing global challenges, the White House said. 

Biden will also “commend Prime Minister Modi’s leadership of the G20 and reaffirm the US commitment to the G20 as the premier forum of economic cooperation, including by hosting it in 2026,” the statement further said. 

India assumed the G20 Presidency on 1 December 2022 from Indonesia and will host the world leaders’ summit in New Delhi on 9-10 September. Potential attendees include Chinese President Xi Jinping and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

As a security measure, Delhi government has declared public holiday from 8 to 10 September in view of the summit. All educational and commercial establishments, including schools, banks, and government offices will remain close in the New Delhi area.