Johannesburg [South Africa], November 23 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (local time) expressed gratitude to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa for the 'warm welcome' extended to him at the G20 Summit 2025 in Johannesburg.

'Upon reaching the G20 Summit venue in Johannesburg earlier today, thanked President Ramaphosa for the warm welcome and for organising this important Summit,' PM Modi wrote on X.

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On the sidelines of the summit, the Prime Minister posed for a group photograph with other G20 leaders and held bilateral meetings to strengthen India's international partnerships.

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Prime Minister Modi also met Vietnam PM Pham Minh Chinh and reaffirmed India's commitment to a stronger, future-oriented friendship with Vietnam remains steadfast.

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'PM Pham Minh Chinh of Vietnam and I met in Johannesburg. Our commitment to a stronger, future-oriented friendship between India and Vietnam remains steadfast,' PM Modi said in a post on the social media platform X.

The Prime Minister also interacted with Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Angolan President Joao Manuel Goncalves Lourenco, discussing avenues for enhanced cooperation.

During the second session of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Johannesburg, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (local time) stressed the urgent need to enhance international cooperation for disaster preparedness and response.

Pointing to the rising frequency and impact of natural disasters worldwide, he described them as a major challenge for humanity. He noted that India had established the Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group during its 2023 G20 presidency to strengthen global collaboration in this area and commended South Africa for prioritising the issue.

'Natural disasters continue to pose a major challenge to humanity. This year as well, they have impacted a large portion of the global population. These events clearly highlight the need to strengthen international cooperation for effective disaster preparedness and response. To support this idea, India formed the Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group during its G20 Presidency. I also congratulate South Africa for giving priority to this important agenda,' PM Modi said during his address.

PM Modi called for a shift from a 'response-centric' to a 'development-centric' approach to building disaster resilience. Highlighting India's belief that space technology should serve all of humanity, he proposed a G20 Open Satellite Data Partnership to make satellite data from G20 space agencies more accessible and valuable, particularly for the Global South. (ANI)