Off the wire
• China plans smart health and elderly care  • Ukrainian president vows to seek peaceful way for Donbas return  • Ukraine sees boom in bank card usage in 2016  • Jungle cats first seen in northern Thailand in 40 years  • 1st Ld-Writethru: China eases restrictions on stock index futures trading  • Zambia to receive 600 mln Euros in foreign investments: official  • Roundup: Cyprus negotiations suffer serious setback  • Tanzania bans centers offering HIV services for key populations  • Political advisors discuss ways to improve preschool education  • Feature: Farmers keen to try new farming techniques to improve productivity  
You are here: 　 Home

2nd LD: G20 FM meeting kicks off in Germany to address international issues

Xinhua, February 17, 2017 Adjust font size:

Foreign ministers of the G20 convened here on Thursday for a two-day meeting to discuss international issues on sustainability, conflict prevention and cooperation with Africa.

"Foreign policy is, and must be, more than crisis management," German Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a statement issued prior to the G20 meeting.

"We are well advised not to constantly run from one fire to the next, putting out the flames. That is why it is so important that the 20 largest countries (economies) in the world are meeting to address the causes of conflicts and the options for peaceful crisis prevention and conflict resolution," he said.

"No country in the world can tackle the major international problems of our time alone," Gabriel noted. "Terrorism, water scarcity, forced migration and humanitarian emergencies cannot be resolved by isolation. Climate change cannot be tackled by barbed wire," he added.

According to the program circulated here, the participants are meeting on Thursday for the first working session focused on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which was adopted in September of 2016 at the Hangzhou Summit.

The participants will meet for the second session on Friday to discuss issues about conflict prevention, post-conflict peacebuilding and how to strengthen cooperation with Africa.

Gabriel is expected to hold a press conference at the end of each session. The meeting, however, will conclude without any official statement.

The meeting of foreign ministers, part of the German Presidency in the G20 Group, is held at the World Conference Center in Bonn. Heightened security was visible outside the conference center and about 2,000 policemen were reportedly mobilized to ensure the safety of the gathering.

The G20 is comprised of 19 countries plus the European Union. The countries are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, Britain and the United States. Endit