G20 Summit is over, statement released

MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/. The G20 Summit, which took place in a video conference format, is over, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS.

"The G20 summit is over," Peskov said.

Earlier, Peskov told journalists that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a phone call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron before joining the summit.

The event took place behind closed doors. The heads of state discussed coordination of actions on fighting the coronavirus and economic fallout of the pandemic.

The annual G20 meeting is expected to take place in November in Saudi Arabia, which presides over the group this year.

Statement

The G20 leaders agreed to act to counter the coronavirus pandemic together with the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations and other international organizations, says the joint G20 statement, published Thursday.

"The G20 is committed to do whatever it takes to overcome the pandemic, along with the World Health Organization (WHO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank Group (WBG), United Nations (UN), and other international organizations," the statement reads.

The G20 leaders are ready to react promptly and take action against the spread of the novel coronavirus, says the final statement circulated after the G20 emergency video-conference summit. "We stand ready to react promptly and take any further action that may be required. We express our readiness to convene again as the situation requires," the document says. "We are confident that, working closely together, we will overcome this," it stresses.

Leaders of the Group of Twenty (G20) member states support measures undertaken by central banks on the back of the coronavirus spread, as indicated in a joint statement after the extraordinary summit. "We support the extraordinary measures taken by central banks consistent with their mandates. Central banks have acted to support the flow of credit to households and businesses, promote financial stability, and enhance liquidity in global markets," G20 leaders say. "We also support regulatory and supervisory measures taken to ensure that the financial system continues to support the economy," they underscore.

G20 countries have called on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to keep them constantly informed about ramifications that the world suffers amid the coronavirus pandemic, says the final statement of the G20 virtual summit held on Thursday.

"We also welcome the steps taken by the IMF and the WBG to support countries in need using all instruments to the fullest extent as part of a coordinated global response and ask them to regularly update the G20 on the impacts of the pandemic, their response, and policy recommendations," the statement reads.

The document also notes that G20 states will "continue to address risks of debt vulnerabilities in low-income countries due to the pandemic."

They also urged the World Health Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group (WBG) to coordinate their activities in order to help developing economies. "We will work swiftly and decisively with the front-line international organizations, notably the WHO, IMF, WBG, and multilateral and regional development banks to deploy a robust, coherent, coordinated, and rapid financial package and to address any gaps in their toolkit."

The G20 countries stated readiness to help the developing countries, especially African states and small island states, against the background of the novel coronavirus pandemic. "We are gravely concerned with the serious risks posed to all countries, particularly developing and least developed countries, and notably in Africa and small island states, where health systems and economies may be less able to cope with the challenge, as well as the particular risk faced by refugees and displaced persons. We consider that consolidating Africa’s health defense is a key for the resilience of global health."

The leaders of G20 have reiterated their goal "to realize a free, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, predictable and stable trade and investment environment" amid the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus. "We commit to continue working together to facilitate international trade and coordinate responses in ways that avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic and trade," according to the communique.

It is noted that emergency measures most of the countries introduced to battle the coronavirus will be "targeted, proportionate, transparent, and temporary."

"We task our Trade Ministers to assess the impact of the pandemic on trade," the G20 leaders state. The Group of Twenty (G20) pledged to invest over $5 trillion into the global economy to overcome financial consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. "We are currently undertaking immediate and vigorous measures to support our economies," the statement says. "We are injecting over $5 trillion into the global economy, as part of targeted fiscal policy, economic measures, and guarantee schemes to counteract the social, economic and financial impacts of the pandemic," the leaders say.