Food security has become an issue due to the shipping disruption in the Black Sea, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, adding that G20 members will have to discuss the sanctions against Russia.The finance minister was speaking at an Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) event on Tuesday, November 1, which was also attended by the G-20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant and Chief Economic Advisor V.Anantha Nageswaran.”This is the spillover impact of decisions taken and they will need to be discussed,” she said.India is set to take over the G20 presidency from December 1, 2022, to November 20, 2023.During its presidency of the G20 or Group of 20, India’s top focus will be on innovations, solutions and preparedness to tackle health emergencies.The finance minister said India was taking up the G-20 presidency in turbulent times and would draw lessons from the Indonesian presidency.Also read: With India set to take over G20 Presidency, here are its planned proposals “India is in a very, very unique position, having trodden on an independent path in today’s world.India is very carefully maintaining its position and voicing for middle income countries.
We are facing the unintended collateral spillovers,” she said.Sitharaman said discussing spillover impact on middle-income countries, crypto regulations as well as international taxation would be an important agenda of the G-20 Presidency.”How much can countries bear the brunt of the spillovers and how can we be ready, by how much can we be ready?,” she asked.Sitharaman also said that emerging markets agenda would also add to the spirit of the G-20 presidency.
“It’s a dynamic middle of the road which is being constantly navigated,” she said.She added that global taxation is a topic of great relevance for today.”Unless countries come together on global taxation it’s difficult to implement,” she said, adding that India’s presidency of G-20 can help bring consensus on matters of global taxation.Also Read: India to assume year-long G20 Presidency, host over 200 meetingsTalking about India’s move towards digital technologies in the future, the finance minister said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has started the pilot on digital currency.”India is looking at a revolution in digital space, people have taken to it like fish in water,” she said.She also said international taxation is an agenda that would need to be taken forward.
“The IMF, OECD, FSB is already doing a lot of work,” she said.Talking about crypto assets, she said it is important to understand how they can be regulated by countries together, in national interest.”India hasn’t come out with any plans on crypto currency yet,” she said.’We are dealing with unknown unknowns and not known unknowns’The G-20 forum, a useful one, is a baby step to level the playing field in the years to come, said Chief Economic Advisor V.
Anantha Nageswaran on Tuesday at the event.Nageswaran said in order for platforms to remain relevant, the necessary conversations need to take place.”It’s always a crisis that provides opportunities.
We hope we can look back at November 2023 and say we did our bit,” he said.Also read: From Hampi to Siliguri — India to put spotlight on heritage, scenic sites during G20 meetingsThe CEA said the global economic environment is subject to many headwinds.”We are dealing with unknown unknowns and not known unknowns,” he said.He said multilateral institutions must cater to the public good.He added that developed countries would take a call on additional capital requirements.”Regulation of virtual assets, cross border remittances, global capital flows and how to create buffers for developing countries are some of the issues to deal with under India presidency of G-20,” he said, adding that there are no easy solutions to these.However, India remains flexible to recalibrate its agenda as may be necessary.Also Read: India’s G20 presidency could shape the future of cryptos and Web3 in the country.
