G-20 summit: High powered Indian representation at Washington

Washington: Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh arrived in the American capital for a high powered summit of the world's 20 biggest economies along with some key aides and officials and expressed the hope that the summit would ensure growth prospects of developing countries did not suffer and that protectionist tendencies would be given the go by.

The G-20 leaders meet in Washington on Saturday.

"I will put forward our views on the need for greater inclusivity in the international financial system, the need to ensure that the growth prospects of the developing countries do not suffer, and the need to avoid protectionist tendencies" the prime minister said.

Expressing his thoughts before he emplaned for Washington, the prime minister also expressed the hope that international financial institutions, such as the IMF, the World Bank and regional development banks, would be strengthened "to ensure that the fallout on the developing countries of the global crisis is minimal."

Even as Singh stressed on the macro aspects, finance minister P Chidambaram, also accompanying the prime minister, said that global leaders "must agree to a new order of global oversight" if they were to resolve the crisis. "A more inclusive system can provide better surveillance and serve as an early warning mechanism," he said.

Chidambaram said that effective surveillance would have identified and prevented risks taken by some large international financial entities. Such unacceptable levels of risk, ultimately, were responsible for the financial collapse which has now snowballed into a global crisis.

"In the absence of such a surveillance mechanism, these financial entities, some of which have collapsed, took unacceptable risks," he said, adding: "That's what led to the crisis in the US."

Meanwhile, involved in separate meets on Thursday were other high-powered Indian officials, including Planning Commission deputy chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia. He held a bilateral with Dan Price, assistant to the US president for International Economic Affairs. His meeting "focused on the issues before the summit", an Indian official said.

Ahluwalia also met president-elect Barack Obama point persons for the summit, former secretary of state, Madeleine Albright and Republican Congressman Jim Leach. According to Indian embassy officials, the meeting involved an exchange of views with the Obama representatives on issues related to the current international economic and financial crisis, the summit and also bilateral relations.

The conversation also served the purpose of opening communication channels with the incoming US administration.

"Secretary Albright conveyed that the president-elect attached high priority to the further strengthening of relations between India and the US," he said.

Also involved in separate meets on Thursday was secretary, department of economic affairs, Ashok Chawla, who met some finance deputies involved in spadework for the summit.