The most important task for the G20 leaders’ summit this year is to resolve the financial crisis in Europe, U.S. President Barack Obama said here on Thursday morning ahead of the summit’s formal opening.

Obama made the remarks in a joint press conference with French President Nicolas Sarkozy after arriving in the French resort city of Cannes to attend the two-day summit which will begin in the afternoon.

"I agree with President Sarkozy that the EU has made some important steps toward a comprehensive solution," Obama said.

"But here at the G20 we're going to have to flesh out more of the details about how the plan will be fully and decisively implemented … The United States will continue to be a partner with the Europeans to resolve these challenges," he said.

Sarkozy, whose country holds the G20 presidency this year, also urged the U.S. to play a leading role in contributing to the global economic growth as well as to the tackling of the eurozone debt crisis as it had been undermining global economic recovery.

The G20 summit which brings together leaders of the world’s major economies has been widely speculated to be dominated by the latest eurozone debt drama after Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou announced earlier this week to put the EU’s new round of bailout package to a referendum.