G7 Summit: PM Modi meets world leaders; gets a hug from Pope, invites him to India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was embraced by Pope Francis at the Outreach Session of the G7 Summit in Italy. The Pope, who became the first pontiff to address the G7, had a brief chat with the Indian PM and other world leaders.

Modi said he admires the Pope's "commitment to serve people and make our planet better". He also invited the head of the Catholic Church to India. 

Meanwhile, PM Modi had meetings with his British counterpart Rishi Sunak and Presidents of France and Ukraine, Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelenskyy respectively on the sidelines of the summit. "Had a very productive meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. India is eager to further cement bilateral relations with Ukraine. Regarding the ongoing hostilities, reiterated that India believes in a human-centric approach and believes that the way to peace is through dialogue and diplomacy," Modi posted on X, also called Twitter.

On Modi's meeting with Macron, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, said: "The two leaders discussed ways to further strengthen partnership including in areas of defence, nuclear, space, education, climate action, digital public infrastructure, critical technologies, connectivity and culture. They also exchanged views on key global and regional issues."

Modi's meeting with Sunak was a first since last September when the British PM was in New Delhi to attend the G20 Summit. It was also Sunak's first official visit to India as Britain's first Prime Minister of Indian heritage.