It is basically a fresh start for the Modi government to begin with the G7 summit after two months' toiling of the general election in 2024. The G7 Group was established to provide solutions for the 1973 energy crisis. Since its beginning, it has been cooperating economically and financially to expand its focus on many current burning issues. It started as an ad hoc body to face financial challenges, but now it has become a formal and organized body to discuss global issues per se.
Since India is not a part of this group, still got invited to attend the G7 summit happening in Italy, which says a lot about the global stature of India on a global platform, along with many ifs and buts. Interestingly, Russia was part of the G7 group from 1997 to 2013, and it was known as the G8 during that period. Since Russia was suspended from this group in 2014 and the rising crisis in Ukraine, both have contributed a lot to making India important on a global platform. And, again, the whole Europe has been going through energy crises because of the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
India has a significant role to play on global issues, with a population of 1.4 billion. Combining with China, South Asia emerges as a huge power center to dilute the notion of a unipolar world. Russia is also inclined to shoulder it. Therefore, the USA and the European countries are in awe and trying to create a group by taking the Indian government into confidence to counter and corner Russia and China. A new 50-billion-dollar loan to Ukraine for sustaining the war with Russia indicates that G7 countries are hell bent on countering the rising collaboration of Russia and China. And, this 50-billion-dollar loan to Ukraine is being created by freezing account of Russian government in European countries.
The trade war between China and the USA is well known. Now G7 countries are intended to join it to counter the unfair business practices by China and its financial institutes to help Russia gain weaponry to continue war with Ukraine. In such a complex situation, the Indian government needs to be very judicious in its diplomatic stance to stand up for its values and interests.
If the Indian government sides with any global power center, it will be lopsided, for sure. It could be understood by the statement of the American deputy secretary of state, Kurt Campbell, who said, “India and China have been going through structural issues, and China is not showing any sign of flexibility to resolve them." It appears to be clear that the USA and the European countries want India to be on their side in tackling Russia and China. This is the reason that the India government has been attending the G7 summit 11 times and five times consecutively for the Modi government.
As India is poised to become the fourth largest economy in the world by overtaking Japan very soon, that will make the Indian economy larger than all the countries in the G7 except for Germany and the USA. Therefore, ignoring India on a global platform will cost the world handsomely.