Shoeless Joe dons slippers and a scarf to pay tribute to Gandhi as he wraps up G20 India

President Joe Biden opted for slippers while other leaders went barefoot to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi Sunday morning at the Raj Ghat memorial in New Delhi – his last official piece of business at the G20. 

Biden got out of the Beast and gabbed with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who presented the U.S. president with a matching scarf. 

The president and the other world leaders then took their positions at wreaths on the perimeter of a yellow and orange square floral display that surrounded the eternal flame. 

Biden was captured animatedly chatting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak before all the leaders participated in a moment of silence. 

Biden will head to Vietnam for meetings and a press conference later Sunday. 

This year’s G20 Leaders’ Summit produced a joint declaration that included wording on the Ukraine war that even Russia, another G20 member, signed off on. 

That’s because it does’t specifically label Russia as an aggressor, though it does say that the ‘use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible.’ 

On Saturday, the G20 also officially welcomed the African Union to the table, with Modi making the announcement at the top of the meeting. 

Additionally, the U.S. and leaders of India, Europe, and the Middle East announced a project that would establish rail, shipping, and tech corridors meant to link regional economies with the prospect of bringing more stability to the turbulent Middle East.

That announcement brought Biden face-to-face with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, after the White House played coy about whether the two leaders would have an official bilateral meeting at the G20. 

The U.S. and Saudi are working toward a so-called ‘mega-deal’ that could lead to Saudi and Israel normalizing relations.  

It would be a historic breakthrough for Mideast peace. 

The White House made no indication that the ‘mega-deal’ was discussed during this trip with MBS. 

‘The president exchanged brief greetings with the crown prince but there was not time in that setting for a more substantive conversation,’ Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer later confirmed.

Instead attention was focused on a project that includes a new rail transportation corridor that would include the India, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Jordan and the European Union – although it isn’t exactly ‘shovel ready,’ with leaders set to announce only a ‘memorandum of understanding’ on it.

One part of the plan would commit the U.S. and Europe to backing the development of a rail corridor that would connect the African nations of Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

‘This is a big deal. This is a real big deal,’ Biden said at the top of the event, paraphrasing his own praise for the passage of Obamacare, but leaving out the expletive. 

Biden specifically thanked MBS, although he botched his name twice before moving on. 

‘Mohammed bin Sa-lum – excuse me, Mohammed bin Sal-am,’ he said. 

U.S. ambassador to India Eric Garcetti revealed Sunday to DailyMail.com that one of the members of the Saudi delegation made his own faux pas.

One of the members of MBS’ entourage was vaping indoors during the summit.

‘We’re sitting there, we’re like around the table and oh, I guess, you know, it might be a no smoking zone but it’s not a no vaping zone,’ Garcetti said laughing. 

The G20 was also memorable for two major absences – that of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

Putin sent Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov in his stead as he’s wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court. 

Xi is sending Premier Li Qiang in his place.  

‘It would be nice to have him here but, no, the summit is going well,’ Biden commented Saturday afternoon when asked about Xi skipping the G20. 

White House officials spent Saturday morning and Friday night knocking China for playing hooky. 

Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer said Saturday morning that ‘really it’s incumbent upon the Chinese government to explain why a leader would or would not participate.’ 

It was unclear if Modi expressed displeasure about Xi and Putin’s absences when he met with Biden Friday night – the first meeting of the U.S. president’s trip, but National Security Council Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific Kurt Campbell told reporters afterward that he sensed the Indians were upset.    

‘I think it is a disappointment for India that both Russia and China are not here,’ he told reporters in a late Friday night briefing. 

‘And the fact that the United States, probably the country that India has invested the most in deepending and developing a relationship with, showed up and is engaged in every major initiative that will be rolled out over the next couple of days was both reassuring and gratifying for the Indian interlocutors and that was not lost on us,’ he also said. 

Modi rolled out the red carpet – literally – for Biden and the other world leaders. 

He treated them to a day and a half of festivities at the newly constructed Bharat Mandapam convention center, including a vegetarian feast Saturday night, co-hosted by India’s President Droupadi Murmu. 

The president arrived in India Friday night, where he was greeted by the U.S. ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, the former Los Angeles mayor, and his daughter Maya. 

He was then treated to a loud rendition of Ed Sheeran‘s Shape of You as dancers on a makeshift stage in front of the airport terminal treated Biden to a brief number. 

Biden then motorcaded to Modi’s residence, where U.S. journalists were left waiting in vans – without bathroom access – outside. 

Press access was one of the gnawing issues at the summit, taking place in the capital of the so-called ‘world’s largest democracy.’

On the flight over, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan pointed to the unique venue where Biden and Modi’s first meeting of the summit was taking place.  

‘This meeting will be taking place at the prime minister’s residence,’ Sullivan told reporters on board Air Force One. ‘So it’s unusual in that respect.’  

Still, he said that the White House pressed the Indian government for press access – and was denied. 

On Saturday, just two U.S. journalists – a writer and a photographer – were allowed access to the opening G20 session. 

As Modi spoke in Hindi, the U.S. reporter wasn’t given the device that allows for simultaneous translation. 

Campbell called India a ‘work in progress,’ on various democratic freedoms, including freedom of the press.   

‘And I think the key here is for us to maintain a respectful dialogue, and to approach some of the challenges with the degree of humility given some of the challenges that we face in our own country as well,’ Campbell said. 

Finer said Saturday that Biden brought up unspecified democracy issues during his conversation with Modi. 

Finer had been asked if Biden had taken Modi to task for bulldozing slums ahead of the summit, leaving droves of poor people homeless in an effort to beautify the city for visiting world leaders. 

City officials also disbursed street dogs and monkeys ahead of the summit. 

The city’s residents were told to take a holiday, leaving streets vacant and shops closed, clearing the way for motorcades to zoom down traffic-less roadways.