Published 20:42 IST, March 26th 2020
PM Modi leads the COVID-19 fight at G20 virtual summit, statement accessed
Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with fellow world leaders during the virtual G20 Summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on Thursday
Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with fellow world leaders during the virtual G20 Summit hosted by Saudi Arabia on Thursday where he stressed the need to put humanitarian interest first amid the coronavirus pandemic. He said that three months since the crisis began, countries have "finally together for considering a coordinated response".
"In this grim situation, not just our own citizens, but the whole world is looking up to us. Our decisions and actions will shape the world’s response not just to this but also future pandemics and calamities," PM Modi said.
What PM Modi stressed on:
PM Modi asked world leaders at the Summit to turn the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic into opportunities. Among many points he made, here are some:
- Put human beings, rather than economic targets, at the centre of our vision of global prosperity and cooperation;
- Freely and openly share medical research and development for the benefit of entire humanity;
- Develop more adaptive, responsive, affordable, and humane health care systems and resources that can be deployed globally.
Virtual G20 Summit
Kickstarting the virtual G20 Summit on Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud called upon member nations to form an effective and coordinated response to COVID-19 and restore confidence in the global economy. Mentioning that the novel coronavirus had caused tremendous suffering to many people around the world, he reaffirmed support for the WHO in coordinating the efforts to counter this pandemic.
He observed that the G20 must take responsibility for financing the research and development of a vaccine for COVID-19. This emergency G20 Summit was convened by Saudi Arabia in the wake of the novel coronavirus crisis. PM Modi is also taking part in the Summit.
The novel coronavirus crisis
First detected in Wuhan in December 2019, COVID-19- the novel coronavirus has affected 197 countries in the world. Presently, there are 4,16,686 confirmed cases of COVID-19 which has led to the death of 18,589 people. As there is no vaccine or specific antiviral medicine to deal to treat COVID-19, countries have been grappling with all possible mechanisms to contain its scope. So far, China, Italy, the US, and Spain have witnessed the most number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus. India has recorded 593 active novel coronavirus cases till now.
Updated 21:11 IST, March 26th 2020