Social media posts claiming US President Joe Biden called an emergency meeting at the recently concluded G20 summit in Indonesia while excluding Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are misleading and false.
BOOM found that the image shows an emergency meeting of the members of G7 bloc and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), of which India is not a part of.
The G20 leaders of the world's most advanced economies met this year at the Nusa Dua resort in Bali, Indonesia between November 15-16. The primary focus of the summit was ensuring food security, economic recovery from the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and post-pandemic challenges. Narendra Modi, who also attended the summit, invited world leaders to the next G20 summit that will be held in India in September next year.
Ashok Swain, a professor at Uppsala University in Sweden, tweeted an image showing Biden and other world leaders seated around a conference table, and claimed that Modi was missing from the meeting.
"Biden called an emergency meeting at #G20 - India's so-called Vishwaguru Modi is missing!," Swain claimed.
Several Twitter users responded to Swain stating that the meeting was of G7 and NATO leaders and that it did not pertain to India.
Later he added, "Those who are saying it was a NATO-G7 meeting should ask why G7 was called to meet when the matter is military in nature? If to include Japan, why not India? Moreover, many members of NATO were not there; how was it a NATO meeting when NATO decisions need to be unanimous?"
Click here to view the tweet and here for an archived link.
The same misleading claim is now circulating on Facebook.
Fact Check
Using the replies on Ashok Swain's tweet as a cue, we looked through US president's official Twitter account (@POTUS) and found the account tweeted another photo from the same meeting on November 16, 2022.
"Earlier, I met with G20 and NATO Leaders to discuss the explosion in Eastern Poland near the Ukrainian border. We offer our full support for and assistance with Poland's ongoing investigation," President Biden's official Twitter account tweeted.
The image also has been posted from Biden's verified Facebook account.
The White House also released a statement on the emergency meeting titled, "Joint Statement of NATO and G7 Leaders on the Margins of the G20 Summit in Bali".
The difference in the date is because of different time zones.
"Today, the Leaders of Canada, the European Commission, the European Council, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States met on the margins of the G20 Summit in Bali and released the following statement," the statement reads.
The statement condemned the missile attacks by Russia on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure on Tuesday.
It further said that members discussed the explosion that took place in the eastern part of Poland near the border with Ukraine and offered full support and assistance to Poland's ongoing investigation.
The meeting was also reported by the Associated Press.
Explosion In Poland Makes World Jittery
A missile attack on Tuesday that killed two people in eastern Poland and sparked fears of the Russia-Ukraine war escalating and dragging NATO into the fray. The NATO alliance, is based on the principle that an attack on one member is an attack on all.
However, the BBC reported on Wednesday that NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the explosion in Poland was likely to have been caused by Ukraine's air defence systems thwarting Russian missiles. This stance was also reiterated by Polish President Andrzej Duda who said there was no sign that the missile was an intentional attack on Poland.
About the G7, G20 and NATO
The G7, is an intergovernmental political forum consisting countries, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
While the members of the G20 are: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union. Spain is also invited as a permanent guest.
Meanwhile the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO alliance members consists of 30 independent member countries major power blocks led by United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France and Italy.
Biden-Modi Meet At G20 Summit
Wire agency ANI tweeted a video on November 15 which showed, US President Joe Biden walking over to PM Narendra Modi for a brief chat before the start of the G20 summit.
