International Relations
In News: Prime Minister of India participated in first-ever I2U2 Virtual Summit along with the heads of the other members of the grouping.
What does I2U2 stand for?
- I2U2 stands for India, Israel, the UAE, and the US, and was also referred to as the ‘West Asian Quad’.
- Besides Prime Minister of India the virtual summit was attended by US President Joe Biden, Israel Prime Minister Yair Lapid and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
What is the aim of I2U2 grouping?
- Its stated aim is to discuss common areas of mutual interest, to strengthen the economic partnership in trade and investment in our respective regions and beyond.
- Six areas of cooperation have been identified by the countries mutually, and the aim is to encourage joint investments in water, energy, transportation, space, health, and food security.
- With the help of private sector capital and expertise, the countries will look to modernise infrastructure, explore low carbon development avenues for industries, improve public health, and promote the development of critical emerging and green technologies.
Takeaways
- UAE will invest $2 billion USD to develop a series of integrated food parks across India that will incorporate state-of-the-art climate-smart technologies to reduce food waste and spoilage, conserve fresh water, and employ renewable energy sources.
- The I2U2 group will also advance a hybrid renewable energy project in Gujarat consisting of 300 megawatts (MW) of wind and solar capacity, complemented by a battery energy storage system.
- The leaders also welcomed India’s interest in joining the United States, the UAE, and Israel in the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate initiative (AIM for Climate).
- The I2U2 leaders reaffirmed their support for the Abraham Accords and other peace and normalization arrangements with Israel
About AIM for Climate
- The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate / AIM4C) is a joint initiative by the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
- AIM for Climate seeks to address climate change and global hunger by uniting participants to significantly increase investment in, and other support for, climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation over five years (2021 – 2025).
Source: Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Q.1) In which one of the following groups are all the four countries members of G2O? (2020)
- Argentina, Mexico, South Africa and Turkey
- Australia, Canada, Malaysia and New Zealand
- Brazil, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam
- Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea
