The Indian delegates who are in the United Kingdom (UK) for the G7 meeting have self-isolated themselves after two members of the delegation tested positive for Covid-19, according to a report by the BBC.
Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is leading the Indian delegation but he is not among the infected persons.
Following these cases of infection, Jaishankar pulled out of face-to-face talks, saying he was "aware of exposure to possible Covid positive cases". With that, the entire Indian delegation in the UK must self-isolate for at least two weeks.
Earlier, Jaishankar had met UK’s Home Secretary Priti Patel on Tuesday. But now he will join the remainder of the G7 meeting virtually. The two cases were picked up by tests in advance and none of them had attended the meeting venue, BBC quoted the Press Association as saying. S Jaishankar has not tested positive.
India has been put under the UK’s red list, which means that all kinds of travel to India have been banned. However, some crucial jobs are exempted from the list like representatives of a foreign country. There are some exemptions to the self-isolation rule "if it is confirmed that you are travelling to the UK for official business that cannot be undertaken while self-isolating", according to the UK government's rules.
India is not amongst the seven nations in the G7 group but was invited by the UK as guest participants this year.
The G7 group - the world's seven largest so-called advanced economies - is made up of the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US. The official summit made up of G7 leaders is taking place in Cornwall next month, but ministers are currently in the UK for talks.
India, Australia, South Korea and South Africa have been invited as guests as the UK tries to deepen ties with the Indo-Pacific region.
