TV9 News: Ahead of G20 Summit, PM Narendra Modi Discusses Black Money Issue With BRICS Leaders...,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday pushed his government’s domestic agenda on black money at an informal meeting of BRICS leaders ahead of the Group of 20 Leaders Summit. This meet serves to coordinate positions between the five big developing economies of the world and pull in their combined weight at the G20 Summit.

Calling for close coordination on unaccounted money kept abroad, Modi said that repatriation of money kept abroad was a key priority if India. “Unaccounted money abroad is also linked to security challenges,” he told his Brazilian, Russian, Chinese and South African counterparts.

At the informal meeting, the five leaders also took stock of the progress made in the establishment if the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement agreed upon in the sixth BRICS Summit in Fortaleza in Brazil mid-July this year. They asked their finance ministers to designate the President and the Vice-Presidents of the new bank well in advance of the next BRICS Summit.

Russia is scheduled to host the seventh BRICS Summit mid next year. “The leaders also announced the setting up of an Interim Board of Directors that will lead the next phase establishing the NDB,” a media note on the informal meeting said. The leaders also asked their Central Bank Governors to ensure that the Inter-Central Bank Agreement foreseen in the CRA be concluded by the Summit in Russia.

The leaders exchanged their views and shared their perspectives on measures to promote growth and job creation. The G20 has set a target for growing their economies by an additional 2 per cent over the next five years. They also discussed issues related to infrastructure, trade, energy, strengthening of the financial system, and cooperation in tax matters.