Paris attacks: Obama's top issue at G20 summit
US President Barack Obama would consult world leaders at G20 summit in Turkey about the recent Paris terrorist attacks. He had also convened a meeting of his National Security Intelligence to review latest intelligence on the attacks. The attacks issue was expected to overshadow the Syrian civil war, refugee crisis in Europe, tensions in the South China sea and the economic agenda in Turkey.
The G20 summit is a meeting held between the G20 countries at different levels - heads of government, finance ministers and central bank governors, employment and labour ministers. The aim is to study, review and promote high level discussion of policy issues pertaining to the promotion of international financial stability. Its transparency and accountability has often been criticized in the media.
G20 includes 19 individual countries- Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan,South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States—along with the European Union (EU).
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's top agenda at the two-day G20 summit would be issues related to terrorism, climate change and global cooperation to unearth black money. He was also expected to raise his concern over the delay in implementation of the quota reform of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The reform would help in cutting transaction cost for transferring money from other countries.
Speical squads comprising agents from Mossad and MI5 were expected to have been roped in to work with Indian agents to secure PM Modi from any crisis during his Turkey visit.
The Turkish police had detained 11 people who had staged a demonstration to protest against the G20 summit. Turkey's Anadolu Agency said that the police had also arrested 4 people outside the Antalya airport. They were members of a left wing group and were carrying placards that called US a murderer. The other 7 people were arrested in Istanbul from outside the British consulate.
Following the deadly terrorist attacks in Paris, government sources informed that French President Francois Hollande had cancelled his participation at the G20 summit in Turkey. Sources said that French Finance Minister Michel Sapin and Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius would attend the G20 summit on behalf of the French President. Michel and Laurent would be visiting Vienna for talks about Syria before the summit.
