Biden to host virtual Democracy Summit, invites India

US President Joe Biden has invited around 110 countries, including India, to a virtual summit on democracy in December. Apart from major Western allies, the Biden administration has also sent invitations to Pakistan and Iraq, as per the invitees list on US State Department's website.

China, the main adversary of the US, has not been invited to the summit while Taiwan has been invited amid tensions going on between the two countries.

Traditional Arab allies of the U.S. like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have also been left out.

Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Nigeria and Niger are among the countries on the list from Africa.

Also read: China's Xi calls Biden 'old friend' at virtual summit, pitches for cooperation

The online conference which is scheduled for December 9-10 would aim to galvanize commitments and initiatives across three principal themes: defending against authoritarianism, fighting corruption, and promoting respect for human rights as per an earlier statement by the White House.