(VOVWORLD) - Under the theme “Shaping an interconnected world”, the G20 Summit of developed and emerging economies will open in Hamburg on Friday. Amidst major changes in politics, security, and economics around the world, the summit intends to reach a consensus on fighting terrorism, preventing trade protection, climate change, migration policies, and big countries’ commitments to multilateral mechanisms.
Founded in 1999, the G20 comprises 19 major advanced economies and the European Union. The annual G20 summit has become a principal forum to discuss the globe’s burning issues.
Top agenda of G20 in 2017
Since the G20 summit in 2016 in China, the world has witnessed unexpected changes, traditional and new challenges, slow economic growth, and numerous difficulties in trade and investment. Meanwhile, the G20 is still in the period of shaping development orientations after the global financial crisis. This year, Germany, the host of the G20 Summit, has to mobilize a large number of police to ensure security for the event as terror threats grow. A few days before the event, North Korea launched a ballistic missile which worried its Northeast Asian neighbors. South Korea and Japan will likely urge the G20 countries to increase pressures on North Korea.
Despite certain positive economic signs, the world economy is facing potential risks which include protectionism and anti-globalization trends and the new US administration’s opposition to trade liberalization and protection of local production and trade. High on the agenda of the G20 Summit will be building resilience for the world economy, improving sustainability, and assuming responsibility.
The new US administration’s changes in its external policy have put the US in dispute with the rest of the G20 including Germany. The US’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change, its controversial intervention in conflicts in the Middle East, and the relation between the US and the EU and Russia over Moscow’s alleged intervention in elections in Europe and the US are the issues that require the G20 to strengthen cooperation.
G20 role in shaping and leading the world economy
Under the theme “Shaping an interconnected world”, the G20 Summit intends to work out ways to maintain global macro-economic stability and promote economic growth in connection with ensuring sustainable development. G20 also prioritizes the implementation of the UN Agenda 2030 on Sustainable Development, and support for African countries, and addresses the challenges of international migration, employment, and gender equality. As the host of the APEC Year 2017, Vietnam, which is not a G20 member, was invited to the summit, showing that the G20 members value APEC’s role in the regional and global governance structure. The theme of APEC Year 2017 is quite similar to the agenda of the G20 summit which promotes sustainable growth, creativity, and inclusiveness and boosts economic, trade, and investment connectivity, encourages innovation, and strengthens cooperation in climate change response.
Contributing two thirds of the world’s population, 85% of global GDP, and 80% of international trade, G20 has proved its capacity and influence in shaping and leading the world economy. The group has strengthened cooperation with other international institutions to maintain macro-economic stability and enable the world economy to escape crisis.