In an opening speech Sunday Xi delivered a stern warning over sluggish global growth, financial market turbulence and receding global trade and investment.
Advertisement
North Korea added to the drama by firing three ballistic missiles off its east coast on Monday.
North Korea has tested missiles at sensitive times in the past to draw attention to its military might. While urging members to take substantial action, Xi said the group “should continue to build our mechanisms to ensure our cooperation continues and deepens”.
“The feeling of the G20 is that if we do not address the question of fairness, it will endanger global governance as we know it”, a senior European diplomat told reporters.
There had been hopes of a breakthrough in stemming the Syria conflict after the United States said it was close to a deal with Russian Federation.
“I really hope that if we reach an agreement – and I have grounds to believe that it can happen in the next few days – we will be able to talk about significantly improving and intensifying our cooperation with the United States on fighting terrorist organisations, including those operating in Syria”, Putin said. On Monday, ISIS-linked suicide bombings killed more than 40 people in Syrian government-controlled areas.
The G-20 called for the formation of a global forum to take steps to address steel excess capacity and encourage adjustments, one of the controversial issues discussed at the summit.
There was also progress was in commitments to protect the environment.
China and the United States ratified the Paris agreement on cutting climate-warming emissions on the eve of the G20 summit, setting the stage for other countries to follow suit.
“These moves are of pioneering significance in the history of the G20”, Xi said about the achievements of the summit which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Barack Obama and other world leaders.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said leaders had agreed that they must work together to boost global economic growth, and she welcomed China’s focus on structural reform.
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde, speaking after the summit, also said more inclusive growth was a priority in the global economy.
President Barack Obama disembarks from Air Force One upon his arrival at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport on September 3, 2016 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province of China. “We haven’t yet closed the gaps”. At about the same time, China’s Xi was telling his South Korean counterpart, Park Gyun-hye, that China opposes plans to deploy a US anti-missile system in South Korea.
Obama said tackling the issue effectively was important to “regain the trust” of people who feared the system is rigged, but that it would not be fixed overnight.
When he left China on Monday, he boarded Air Force One via a full-sized staircase provided by Hangzhou International Airport.
Advertisement
The world’s leading economies spoke out against a return to protectionism and defended the unfashionable concepts of free trade and globalisation Monday, warning the listless global economy needs an urgent reboot.
