Saudi Arabia supports African Union’s joining of G20

A man arranges the national flags of participating nations during the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi, India on March 2, 2023. (AFP)
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RIYADH: Saudi Arabia said it supports and endorses the African Union joining the G20 as a permanent member, the Kingdom’s foreign ministry announced on Tuesday.

“The ministry expresses its aspiration to accept the accession of the African Union, due to its importance in addressing the challenges we face today, such as climate change, economic slowdown, debt distress, and uneven recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, which require collective action to address them within the framework of cooperation and mutual trust between the Kingdom and the African Union countries,” it said in a statement.

The Kingdom said it also looks forward to strengthening the bilateral relations and taking them to higher levels to serve the interests of the two sides.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had written to the leaders of the G20 nations proposing the AU be given full, permanent membership of the diplomatic group at its upcoming summit in India.

(With Reuters)