Anthony Albanese greets Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at G20 summit after jetting into New Delhi with his partner Jodie Haydon

The Prime Minister has used a speech at the G20 summit to urge countries to commit to net-zero policies to reduce the impact of devastating natural disasters.

Speaking on the first day of the world summit in New Delhi on Saturday, Anthony Albanese said urgent action is needed to prevent a further worsening of climate change.

“Our communities have weathered another year of extreme climate impacts,” he told world leaders at the summit.

‘Devastating weather conditions have affected so many countries, including Australia. The science is clear: our climate has already changed.

‘We are united in our ambition for a net-zero future.

“Now we must turn our hands to action: urgent, comprehensive action.”

During his intervention at the summit, Mr Albanese touted the federal government’s own net-zero transformation and $40 billion for energy transformation projects.

He urged G20 economies to increase production of renewable energy technology.

Mr Albanese said Australia was committed to stepping up climate action.

“Australia has long been a reliable global energy supplier, and we will continue to be so, but as the world decarbonises, what we export will change,” he said.

“We are expanding our capacity to supply the minerals, metals and clean energy components to decarbonize our region.”

Mr Albanese was greeted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is hosting the summit.

The global talks come amid rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific and increasing Chinese aggression. Tensions are expected over the G20 statement on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin skipped the summit, with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attending in his place.

During his speech, Albanese lashed out at the Russian invasion, which has been going on since early 2022.

“(Prime Minister Modi) has guided the G20 through another challenging year, a year made even more challenging, of course, by Ukraine’s illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine, which I condemn in the strongest terms,” he said.

Early reports suggest that a standoff over the formulation of how to tackle the invasion of Ukraine has delayed agreement on an official summit communiqué, with Russia unlikely to sign a condemnation of its military action.

Another major world leader, Chinese President Xi Jinping, also chose not to attend due to tensions between China and India.

China’s second-in-command, Premier Li Qiang, will represent the Asian country at the summit.

Mr Albanese had already met Mr Li in Jakarta on Thursday, on the sidelines of the East Asia summit.

Australia sought to de-escalate tensions with China following the removal of trade tariffs on barley.

Later in the day, Albanian will hold bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

He will also attend talks as part of MIKTA, a meeting of top leaders from Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey and Australia.

The Prime Minister held informal talks last night with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen about a free trade deal between Australia and the EU, which had previously been stuck in negotiations.

The pair talked about finalizing the deal as quickly as possible.

The summit has brought New Delhi to a standstill, with police shutting down large parts of the city.

Businesses and schools in the area have been ordered to close as part of safety measures

During the opening speech, Mr Modi said the G20 had agreed to add the African Union, made up of 55 countries from the continent, as a permanent member of the bloc.