From Chinese Press

Priority should be given to G20 - a new emerging thing

By Wu Jianmin (peopledaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-06-30 09:55

The Fourth Group of 20 (G20) Summit, held in Toronto, Canada on June 26-27 under the theme of "Recovery and new Beginnings", is the first in its new capacity as the world's premier forum for global economic cooperation, as determined at the previous summit in Pittsburg, the U.S. in September 2009. Advanced economies have agreed at the summit to cut deficit by half in three years.

Chinese President Hu Jintao attended a plenary session of the fourth G20 summit in Toronto on Sunday, June 27, at which he laid out three-point proposal for promoting a strong, sustainable and balanced global economic growth, calling for joint efforts of the international community for global economic recovery.

"Advanced economies have committed to fiscal plans that will at least halve deficits by 2013 and stabilize or reduce the government debt-to GDP ratios by 2016," according to a draft document of the Toronto summit. The Toronto summit is quite successful in view of whatever it has achieved.

Related readings:  Hu attends G20 summit, meets foreign leaders  G20 commits to deficit reduction time line   G20 leaders promise to keep markets open to trade

In another development, Dublin, Ireland hosted in early May a plenum meeting of the Tripartite Committee, or a main think tank for the United States, and European and Asian nations. When the meeting was in session, I personally heard a saying that G20 is a newly emerged thing in the international relations. For approximately four to five centuries, it is the first time that an international mechanism has drawn or included major powers around the globe, both developed countries and new emerging nations. Anyhow, there is some reasoning in this notion, and it also illustrates the importance of this mechanism.

Why world public opinions did not refer much to the G20 prior to the outbreak of the global financial crisis, but it has indeed played a vital role on the world arena today, and this is attributed to the outcome of global changes.

A salient feature for ongoing global changes is definitely the rise of many developing nations and particularly a batch of newly emerging nations. These nations have ascended the global stage with a greater capacity and, if without their participation, numerous global issues will remain unresolved. Following the outbreak of global financial crisis in August 2008, however, it is up to the newly upgraded G20, not the G8 to cope with global financial and economic issues, and this poses a change of far-reaching significance.

The entire world was plunged into a panic in August 2008 as people worldwide then feared that the grave financial crisis could be turned into the great depression. The four G20 summits have, however, attained substantial results through an effort to coordinate international cooperation; this is a great fortune for people the world over as well as the eminent contribution by the G20.