CRI听力: G20 Leaders Agree to Sustain World Economic Recovery

World leaders at the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh have reached agreement in taking tough and lasting measures to sustain world economic recovery, bring order back to the financial markets, and reform international economic cooperation and governance. They see the summit as a major success, saying meetings of the G20 members would be the primary way of coordinating global economic policy.

Our correspondent in Pittsburgh Shanshan has the story.(www.hxen.net)

The leaders agree that the measures taken since the London Summit to help restore the economy worked, and have made new commitments in the Leaders' Statement, in a bid to achieve strong, sustained and balanced growth in the 21st century.

President of the host nation, the United States, Barack Obama briefs four major outcomes of the summit.

"First, we agree to sustain our recovery plan until the growth is restored, and a framework of prosperity is in place. Second, we agree to make concrete steps to move forward with tough new financial regulations so the crisis like this can never happen again. Third, we agree to phase out subsidies for fossil fuels so that we can transition to a 21st century energy economy. Finally, we agree to reform our system of global economic cooperation and governance."

In addition, the Statement outlines more concrete targets to meet , such as to fight protectionism and bring the current WTO trade negotiations Doha Round to a successful conclusion in 2010, and to spare no effort to reach agreement in Copenhagen through the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change negotiations.

China's Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei says at a press conference that there are some highlights at the summit.

"G20 members have expressed strong desires to reform the international financial system, which signals that the global framework of financial governance and decision-making should reflect the realities of the world economy of today. The focus of the reform is to increase representation, voice and voting power of developing countries."

He Yafei says another highlight of the summit is the discussion about the future of the G20 group.

"Countries agree that G20 should be the main platform for the global economic governance. Three summits have been held facing the ongoing world financial crisis, and it's fair to say lots have been achieved. It has played an important and unique role to promote world economic recovery."

Summit delegates have all pledged to honor their commitments and put them into practice. US President Barack Obama says the Pittsburgh summit has lifted the level of global economic cooperation.

"At the G20, we've achieved a level of tangible global economic cooperation that we have never seen before. There's much more work to be done. But we leave here today more confident and more united in the common effort of advancing security and prosperity for all of our people".

Leaders of the G20 group agreed to meet twice next year, in Canada in June 2010 and in Korea in November. They expect to meet annually thereafter and will meet in France in 2011.

SS, CRI news, Pittsburgh.