Ahead of US President Joe Biden’s visit to New Delhi, India, for G20 Leaders’ Summit, First Lady Jill Biden has tested positive for COVID-19.
However, President Biden was administered a COVID test and he tested negative, The White House informed. US President Joe Biden will test at a regular cadence this week and monitor for COVID symptoms. Earlier, Biden’s 72-year-old wife, whose symptoms were described as mild, had COVID in August 2022.
President Biden was due to visit India to participate in the G20 meeting, His official week-ahead schedule showed him travelling to New Delhi on September 7 to attend the G20 Summit. This schedule was released shortly after the announcement of the First Lady Jill Biden’s diagnosis.
Earlier on September 4, Joe Biden had expressed his “disappointment” over reports of Chinese President Xi Jinping skipping the meet.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also confirmed that he won’t be attending the summit in New Delhi. On August 28, Putin spoke to PM Modi and confirmed that FM Sergey Lavrov will represent Russia. In addition to Biden, World leaders like Rishi Sunak, Anthony Albanese will grace their presence at the G20 Summit.
India holds the Presidency of the G20 from December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023. The G20 members represent around 85 per cent of the global GDP. It also represents over 75 per cent of the global trade and about two-thirds of the world’s population.
Around 10,000 delegates from 40 countries, including 20 member states are visiting India to participate in the G20 Summit, scheduled to take place in Delhi beginning September 9.