G20 ends, Joint Statement falls short of expectations

The summit of the world's leading developed and emerging economies (G20) has officially ended in the capital Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Although the content of the Joint Statement did not achieve the expected goals, the fact that the countries reached consensus at the Conference showed the success of the host country Argentina when there were too many divisions on issues such as international trade, environmental protection and migration...

The joint statement was reached after intensive talks by diplomats amid deep divisions among member states. EU officials said the US appeared to disagree on every issue and that all sides had tried to compromise to reach consensus.

On global trade, the statement said the 20 G20 members support multilateral trade and called for reform of the World Trade Organization. The joint statement also stressed the importance of joint efforts to support refugees and address issues that cause people to flee their countries. The statement also expressed a commitment to supporting the rules-based international order, despite President Donald Trump's opposition to some of the rules in that order.

With US-China tensions at the Summit, European leaders sought to play the role of mediator and tried to tone down the goals set out in the Joint Statement, such as avoiding the use of the word "increased protectionism". In the final plenary session of the Summit, G20 leaders also agreed that the technological revolution is a challenge that affects employment and cannot be separated from continuing education and training. Along with that, the Summit also discussed and agreed to promote gender equality, considering it a central task rather than just a reality of social justice and development.

Speaking at the closing session, host country President Mauricio Macri affirmed that the member countries' consensus to issue a joint statement of the conference reflected the need to revive international trade and concerns about the consequences of climate change, while French President Emmanuel Macron called it a victory when the US signed the Joint Statement after a series of disagreements. A White House official said that the Joint Statement met many of the US's goals, especially the issue of reforming the World Trade Organization.

At the end of the conference, Argentina transferred the rotating presidency to Japan, the host country of the 2019 G20 conference. In addition to the main contents of the conference, issues such as tensions between Russia and Ukraine, the conflict in Syria and the UK's exit from the European Union received special attention at this conference.

Speaking at a press conference after the Summit, referring to recent tensions with Ukraine, Russian President Putin emphasized: “Ukraine has imposed martial law in 10 regions following tensions with Russia. The Ukrainian President’s policy is not supported by all the people in this region. And that means dividing the country. Russia will also not impose any restrictions on Ukrainian citizens. On the contrary, we will pursue the path of ensuring their freedom on our territory.”

The Russian and German leaders in the bilateral meeting on the sidelines also agreed to continue discussions on recent tensions between Russia and Ukraine at the advisory level of four countries including Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France.

Regarding the Syrian war, many leaders supported efforts towards implementing the agreements reached on Syria between Germany, France, Türkiye and Russia at the Istanbul Summit in October 2018./.