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BENGALURU, Feb 24 (Reuters) - G20 financial leaders must condemn Russia's aggression against Ukraine, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told Reuters in an interview on Friday, adding that Europe was working on new sanctions against Moscow. Speaking on the first day of the G20 financial leaders meeting near Bengaluru, Le Maire said, "Sanctions will be more and more efficient, more and more effective". Le Maire said that India's purchase of discounted Russian oil has reduced Moscow's oil revenues. On the G20 communique, Le Maire said, "The purpose is to stick to the wordings of 2022 in Bali. Russia, which is a member of the G20, refers to its actions in Ukraine as a "special military operation", and avoids calling it an invasion or war.

☆ G20 finance leaders to gauge toll on global economy on Ukraine war's anniversary
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BENGALURU, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Global finance leaders will tally the economic damage from Russia's war in Ukraine on Friday as they meet on the conflict's first anniversary with some voicing concerns that more sanctions on Moscow would disrupt a modest improvement in growth. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Thursday highlighted the improvement, saying the global economy "is in a better place today than many predicted just a few months ago". Yellen and fellow G7 ministers on Thursday called for more financial support for Ukraine and vowed to maintain tough sanctions on Russia. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said the pressure on Russia must be kept high to "completely isolate" Russia's economy. Yellen said the communique was still under discussion and she hoped to see a strong condemnation of Russia's invasion and the damage it has caused Ukraine and the global economy.

Participants at the meeting, however, are likely to focus on the war in Ukraine. The G20 bloc includes the wealthy G7 democracies, as well as Russia, China, India, Brazil and Saudi Arabia. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told Reuters that G20 financial leaders must condemn Russia's aggression against Ukraine and that Europe was working on new sanctions against Moscow. G7 chair Japan's finance minister, Sunichi Suzuki, told reporters that the group would closely monitor the effectiveness of sanctions and "take further actions as needed". German Finance Minister Christian Lindner said the pressure on Russia must be kept high to "completely isolate" Russia's economy.

☆ Wealthy G7 nations gearing up for new volley of sanctions on Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Leaders of the bloc of developed nations will meet virtually on Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion, and are expected to announce the sanctions package. Current G7 president Japan said it was considering new measures, without giving any details, and called for a unified stance towards Moscow. "Russia is refusing to change their hardline stance," Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said at a news conference to mark the anniversary. India, which has maintained a neutral stance on the conflict, does not want the G20 to discuss additional sanctions on Russia. Speaking at the G20, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen accused Russian officials of being "complicit" in atrocities in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

☆ India is trying to get G20 countries to follow Putin's instruction not to refer to Russia's war in Ukraine as a 'war,' reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Aditi Bharade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

India doesn't want the G20 to label Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a "war," per Reuters. Its officials tried to convince members to refer to it as a "crisis," but were met with pushback. (He has on occasion ignored his own rule and used the word "war," but the euphemism continues to be widespread in Russian official media.) China has also refused to call the war a "war," instead terming it a "crisis," per Bloomberg. "India is not keen to discuss or back any additional sanctions on Russia during the G20," an Indian official told Reuters.

☆ As G20 finance chiefs gather, Yellen calls for more economic aid to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Continued, robust support for Ukraine will be a major topic of discussion during my time here in India." Yellen said that previous U.S. military, economic and humanitarian aid totalling $46 billion has allowed Ukraine to preserve economic and financial stability under "extraordinary circumstances." In the coming months, we expect to provide around $10 billion in additional economic support for Ukraine." Yellen said that G20 countries, especially China, need to work to ease the debt overhang that is putting more than half of low-income countries in debt distress. The United States intends to put forward a candidate for the World Bank presidency "very quickly", she added.

☆ East African regional leaders demand ceasefire in eastern Congo
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-04 | by ( Clement Manirabarusha | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUJUMBURA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - East African regional leaders on Saturday renewed their call for an immediate ceasefire by all sides in the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo that pits the country's military against a rebel group it has accused Rwanda of supporting. At a summit in Burundi's capital Bujumbura, the leaders of the regional East African Community (EAC) bloc called for an "immediate ceasefire by all parties," according to a communique issued at the end of the meeting. The conflict has inflamed regional tensions with Congo accusing neighbour Rwanda of backing and sponsoring the Tutsi-led rebellion. United Nations experts and Western powers have also accused Rwanda of backing the M23, although Rwanda has denied any involvement. Saturday's summit was attended by heads of state from Rwanda, Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi and senior officials from the region.

☆ OPEC+ committee recommends no change in oil output policy at virtual meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A technical committee of the influential OPEC+ oil producers' coalition has made no recommendation to change the group's existing production policy in its latest meeting, according to three delegates. The OPEC+ Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee, which tracks the alliance's compliance with its output quota, convened digitally on Wednesday. The second OPEC+ technical group, the Joint Technical Committee that studies market fundamentals, canceled a virtual meeting originally scheduled for Jan. 31, according to a delegate. Neither committee can outright decide OPEC+ production policy, but the JMMC can recommend plans for the review of coalition ministers. Under that provision, the group would nominally lower their production output quotas by 2 million barrels per day.

☆ West African leaders plan peacekeeping force to counter 'coup belt' reputation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Afolabi SotundeABUJA, Dec 4 (Reuters) - West African leaders said on Sunday they would establish a regional peacekeeping force to intervene in member states to help restore security and constitutional order in a region that has witnessed several coups in the past two years. West and Central Africa has made strides in the past decade to shed its reputation as a "coup belt", but the Economic Commission for West African States (ECOWAS) wants to do more to boost constitutional government in its member states. The ECOWAS leaders also expressed concern over the continued detention of 46 Ivorian soldiers in Mali. They asked Malian authorities to release the soldiers by the end of this month. Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Jiang Zemin, Former China Leader, Dies at 96
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Chun Han Wong | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

HONG KONG—Jiang Zemin, the former Chinese leader who rose to power after the deadly crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests and presided over his country’s economic rise heading into the 21st century, died Wednesday at the age of 96. Mr. Jiang died at 12:13 p.m. in Shanghai, where he succumbed to leukemia and multiple organ failure, according to a Communist Party communiqué published by the government-run Xinhua News Agency.

Leaders from the Group of Seven nations as well as Spain and the Netherlands, who are all on the Indonesian island of Bali for the G20 summit, held an emergency meeting in response to the missile strike in Poland. The G20 leaders' meeting on Wednesday will be important to raise their awareness of the war in Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron's office said on Tuesday after reports of the blasts in Poland. G20 leaders were due to visit a site in Bali to plant mangroves on Wednesday morning, although the schedule of the meeting hosted by Indonesia has not always run to plan. As at other recent international forums, the United States and its allies were seeking a statement from the G20 summit against Moscow's military actions. A 16-page draft declaration seen by Reuters, which diplomats said was yet to be adopted by leaders, acknowledged the rift over the Ukraine war.

☆ G-20 nations to condemn Russia's Ukraine invasion as Foreign Minister Lavrov watches on
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

NUSA DUA, INDONESIA - NOVEMBER 15: Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov arrives at the formal welcome ceremony to mark the beginning of the G20 Summit on November 15, 2022 in Nusa Dua, Indonesia. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images,)G-20 nations on Tuesday will issue a joint statement condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine, saying "today's era must not be of war." The communique has been agreed upon by the highest public servants of all the G-20 nations and is expected to be approved by the heads of state later on Tuesday. At the time of writing, it was unclear whether China was among the nations condemning Russia's war in Ukraine. The joint statement Tuesday also said "the peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital.

"Most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy," the draft said, suggesting that Russia had opposed the language. "There were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions," said the draft declaration, which was confirmed by a European diplomat. "Recognising that the G20 is not the forum to resolve security issues, we acknowledge that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy," the draft declaration said. Fiscal stimulus measures should be "temporary and targeted" to cushion the blow of rising commodity costs for the most vulnerable, to avoid adding to inflationary pressures, the draft declaration said. Wrangling over how to describe the war in Ukraine has prevented G20 ministers earlier this year from issuing a joint communique.

☆ Morning Bid: Detente and dollars
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Nupur Anand | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike Dolan. As investors closely monitor shifting economic sands, signs of some easing of this year's tense geopolitics adds a tailwind to the yearend market bounce. The dollar's ongoing retreat, amid hopes of a downshift in U.S. interest rate rises next month that Federal Reserve Vice Chair Lael Brainard encouraged late Monday, also riffs off a defusing of at least some extreme political risks. JPMorgan cut its full-year 2022 China growth forecast to 2.9% from 3.1% previously and its 2023 forecast to 4% from 4.5%. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ G20 starts in Bali as Ukraine war, raging inflation top agenda
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Angie Teo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/10] China's President Xi Jinping greets Indonesia's President Joko Widodo as he arrives for the G20 leaders' summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, November 15, 2022. "We hope the G20 summit can deliver concrete partnerships that can help the world in its economic recovery," President Joko Widodo said after a bilateral meeting with Biden. But Xi and Putin have grown increasingly close in recent years, and reaffirmed their partnership just days before Russia invaded Ukraine. A statement from the Chinese foreign minister said Xi told Biden nuclear weapons cannot be used and nuclear wars cannot be fought. G20 leaders will denounce the use of, or any threat to use, nuclear weapons, according to an early draft of a G20 statement seen by Reuters.

Their agreement to talk again about climate thawed relations frozen earlier this year after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi angered China by visiting Taiwan. Teresa Ribera, Spain's climate minister, said she was hopeful that the rapprochement would energise negotiations. “This unequivocal signal from the two largest economies to work together to address the climate crisis is more than welcome; it’s essential," Bapna said. Heading into the last week of the two-week conference progress has been slow, frustrating negotiators who are struggling to find consensus on how rich countries should help developing nations meet the cost of climate-fuelled disasters. The outcome on that issue, referred to in climate talks as "loss and damage", could define the perceived success or failure of the COP27 talks.

☆ For host Indonesia, a G20 summit dogged by Russia-Ukraine rancour
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Kate Lamb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of its southern neighbour sparked calls by some Western leaders for a boycott of the G20 summit and for the withdrawal of Russian President Vladimir Putin's invitation. Russia confirmed at almost the last minute that Putin would not attend the summit with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov taking his place. Indonesia will breath a sigh of relief as the summit opens but key issues remain unresolved. "We have to make sure that Russia's war is mentioned in the G20 declaration in one way or another. A traditional G20 "family photo" of leaders also appears to be off the table this year, sources say.

[1/4] Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi gestures during an interview at the Foreign Ministry in Jakarta, Indonesia, November 3, 2022. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar UlfianaJAKARTA, Nov 3 (Reuters) - G20 summit host Indonesia is waiting to see if Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend, Indonesia's foreign minister said on Thursday, adding that differences over Ukraine had made preparations for the meeting particularly fraught. Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi told Reuters in an interview that Putin's attendance at the meeting might only become clear at the last minute. The grouping has failed to release joint communiques at several meetings this year, including a G20 foreign ministers' meeting in July. Retno said that while discussion of the Ukraine war was inevitable, the G20 remained "intact".

☆ Videos showing Iranian crackdown on protesters go viral as anger grows
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

DUBAI, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Videos on social media showing Iranian security forces severely beating protesters have gone viral as anger grows at a widening crackdown with arrests of prominent figures from rappers to economists and lawyers aimed at ending seven weeks of unrest. One video dated Oct. 22 that went viral on social media showed a dozen riot police beating a man at night on a street in southern Tehran. Other videos of the beating of protesters, which Reuters has been unable to verify, have also spread online. Iran said at least 36 members of the security forces were also killed. On Monday night, security forces went to the house of prominent economist Davoud Souri and arrested him.

☆ IMF countries call for end to war in Ukraine; Russia blocks communique
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 14 (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund member countries on Friday issued a near-unanimous call for Russia to end its war in Ukraine, the IMF's steering committee chair said, calling the conflict the single biggest factor fueling inflation and slowing the global economy. But Nadia Calvino, Spain's economy minister, told a news conference that Russia again blocked issuance of a joint communique during a meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by David Lawder and Andrea Shalal; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Their joint communique released by the U.S. Treasury late on Wednesday did give Japan something - but it was thin gruel. read more"Recognizing that many currencies have moved significantly this year with increased volatility, we reaffirm our exchange rate commitments as elaborated in May 2017," the G7 wrote. And, for the record, the 2017 phraseology was that excess volatility and disorderly currency moves have negative impacts on their economies and financial stability. read more"We cannot tolerate excessive volatility in the currency market driven by speculative moves," he opined after. The big question is whether this dollar surge is in fact a "short run" aberration or whether it is a more permanent feature of the global landscape.

A new military takeover has been declared in Burkina Faso, after a day marked by gunfire and confusion in the capital city of Ouagadougou. In an announcement on state television late Friday, a Burkina Faso military official announced the dissolution of the current government and the dismissal of the junta leader, President Lieutenant-Colonel Paul-Henri Damiba. With the suspension of the constitution and government, this is Burkina Faso’s second military takeover in a year. “People of Burkina Faso, faced with the degradation of the security situation, we have attempted several times to refocus the transition on the issue of security,” Sorgho said. This week, unknown assailants killed eleven soldiers during an attack on a 150-vehicle convoy taking supplies to a town in northern Burkina Faso.

The Fed's relentless interest rate-raising campaign, and resulting worldwide surge in the dollar, is tightening global financial conditions at an alarming pace. Many feel this should put global financial leaders on the highest contagion alert. China's central bank has asked major state-owned banks to be prepared to sell dollars overseas to stem the yuan's descent. chartchartEINSTEIN & INSANITYThere are signs that the recent global market turmoil is opening eyes in Washington. Perhaps surprisingly then, the last time G7 central banks acted together in FX was in 2001, selling yen for dollars.

☆ Western nations concerned by presence of extremist groups in Afghanistan
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterTaliban fighters celebrate the first anniversary of the fall of Kabul on a street in Kabul, Afghanistan, August 15, 2022. REUTERS/Ali KharaWASHINGTON, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Some western countries expressed grave concern about the presence and operations of extremist groups in Afghanistan and said the Taliban were not meeting their counter-terrorism commitments. Special envoys and representatives for Afghanistan of the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States met last week and released a joint communiqué on Thursday in which they said the presence of Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was recently killed in a U.S. strike, showed the Taliban was not keeping its commitment. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Costas Pitas, writing by Kanishka Singh; editing by Chris GallagherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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