Leaders from the Group of 20 (G20) industrialized and emerging economies started their one-day close-door discussion in London on Thursday for a global solution to the financial and economic crisis.
The summit started by a breakfast scheduled at 8:30 am local time after the leaders were greeted by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the entrance of London's exhibition center, or ExCel London, in eastern London.
Security is tight around the venue. Police can be seen at every crossroads within about five kilometers. Journalists have to pass through two security checkpoints to get to the press center, where about 2200 registered journalists work and many of them stayed for the night.
Outside the Excel, anti-capitalist protesters started their second day of protests. On Wednesday, at least 87 were arrested and one protester died, London's police said.
Brown, the host, who made a global trip and met the leaders to prepare for the summit, said he was confident that the summit will produce consensus on a global plan for economic recovery and reform.
"We are within a few hours, I think, of agreeing a global plan for economic recovery and reform and I think the significance of this is that we are looking at every aspect," Brown said on the eve of the summit, which took place in an exhibition center in eastern London.
The leaders are expected to have a busy day of intensive talks. A joint communique will be issued at the end of the summit.
Expectations are high that the leaders of the world's largest economies would be committed to a coordinated response to the economic crisis, an overhaul of the global financial architecture and restraint from protectionism.
Attending the meeting are leaders from Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, Russia, Turkey, the United States and the European Union (EU).
Top officials from the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are also joining the gathering.
The leaders will be aiming to enhance coordination of a global fiscal stimulus, reach a consensus on increasing loans to the IMF, and reaffirm commitment to anti-protectionism to help restore global sustainable economic growth and stabilize the financial market.
But the outcome of the summit, however, rests with participants' ability to bridge their differences on economic stimulus plans and reforming the global financial system.
While the White House has pushed for more fiscal measures to help the economy, major European countries, notably Germany and France, remain sceptical about this and they mainly focus on tightening financial regulation and reforming the world financial system to prevent such a crisis in future.
On the eve of the summit, French President Nicolas Sarkozy had threatened to walk out of the London summit if his demand for stronger financial regulation were not met.
Speaking in an interview with French radio Europe 1 on Wednesday, Sarkozy reiterated that he wouldn't want to "associate" himself with a G20 that would be concluded by "false compromises."
He said neither France nor Germany is satisfied with the current draft of the G20 statement, which he said should go even further on tightening financial regulations.
"Regulation is at the heart of the debate," Sarkozy said.
Major developing countries also support reforming the world financial system, but they insist that should have a bigger say in multilateral financial discussion and relevant policy-making process.
Analysts believe that the fact that the G20 has usurped the G8 as the main forum for discussing the crisis already illustrates a shift in the economic and diplomatic landscape with the emergence of India, Brazil and, particularly, China as major players.
On Wednesday, leaders of major countries had separate meetings and called for closer cooperation in dealing with the financial crisis.
Chinese President Hu Jintao said at a meeting with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev Wednesday that China and Russia should strengthen cooperation to jointly overcome the current difficulties under the complicated and grave conditions of the world economy.
The two countries need to strengthen communication and consultation, coordinate their stands within the G20 framework in particular, and push forward reforms of the international financial system, Hu said.
U.S. and British leaders voiced optimism that the G20 summit will reach consensus on concerted efforts to deal with major issues.
"I am absolutely confident that this meeting will reflect enormous consensus about the need to work in concert to deal with these problems," said U.S. President Barack Obama after talks with Brown on Wednesday.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Sarkozy Wednesday called for concrete actions at the Group of 20 (G20) , warning that those who do not abide by the G20 commitments must be singled out.
Speaking at a joint press conference following their meeting in London one day ahead of the summit, Sarkozy said bank loans need to be traceable, funds needs to be registered and checked, adding that the aim of agreeing on new regulations for the financial sector is "non-negotiable."
The two leaders demanded that a new regulation of the international financial system be set up. "Without a new regulation ,there will be no trust. And without trust, there will be no recovery. It is a major objective, non-negotiable," said Sarkozy.
Merkel said that "more regulation is necessary" for the world to get out of the crisis.
(Xinhua News Agency April 2, 2009)
