Leader of the Global South: Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea Marape PM Modi

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape hailed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “leader of the global south” during his address at the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) on Monday.
Marape said, ‘We are victims of global powerplay… You (PM Modi) are the leader of the Global South. We will support your (India) leadership on global forums. Prime Minister Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the Pacific country as part of the second leg of his three-nation tour.
The summit assumes additional significance as it is taking place at a time when Beijing is actively working to increase both its military and diplomatic presence in the region. PM Modi had earlier said, “I am grateful that all 14 Pacific Island Countries (PICs) have accepted the invitation to participate in this important summit (FIPIC).”
FIPIC was established by PM Modi in 2014
FIPIC was established during Prime Minister Modi’s 2014 visit to Fiji. In a tweet, PM Modi said, “Prime Minister James Marape and I had a very productive conversation covering the full range of bilateral relations between India and Papua New Guinea. We discussed commerce, technology, healthcare and addressing climate change.” Discussed ways to enhance cooperation. Leaders of 14 countries are attending the FIPIC summit, a remarkable development considering how infrequently they usually meet due to connectivity issues and other concerns.
Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu are the nations that make up the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC). ). To promote cooperation in the Pacific region and strengthen ties with India, these countries participate in FIPIC.