EXCERPT: G-8 CHAIRMAN'S NEWS CONFERENCE ON SUMMIT
CONCLUSIONS
(Financial standards, crime, employability discussed)
London -- Financial standards, international crime, development aid, global disease, the environment, employability, the millenium bug, and Northern Ireland were among the topics discussed at the May 15-17 G-8 Summit in Birmingham, according to Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and chairman of the 1998 G-8 Summit in Birmingham, England.
Following is an excerpt from a May 17 press conference at the conclusion of the G-8 meeting given by Blair:
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EXTRACT FROM PRESS CONFERENCE GIVEN BY THE PRIME MINISTER,
MR. TONY BLAIR, BIRMINGHAM, SUNDAY 17 MAY 1998
G8 SUMMIT CONCLUSIONS
PRIME MINISTER:
Let me run through the main points that we have managed to agree over these past few days, of what I think has, by common acceptance, been a highly a successful summit.
FINANCIAL STANDARDS
First of all we have agreed some propositions for new financial architecture for the world to learn the lessons of the Asian crisis: transparency, codes of good practice, with publicity for those who fall short, the designing of a set of international economic and financial standards which countries can subscribe to, and which help to give them credibility in international economic terms and also ensure that the markets function in a more stable way.
We also paid particular tribute in the discussion this morning to the work that China has done in the aftermath of the Asian economic crisis and to its very strong commitment to financial stability.
We made a firm and agreed response to the Indian nuclear tests, with particular emphasis on the forward strategy of bringing India into the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and the non-proliferation system. We made clear statements also on the Middle East peace process, on Kosovo and on the Ukraine.
INTERNATIONAL CRIME
On crime we had a detailed discussion in which we not merely agreed certain principles in relation to how we deal with international crime, in particular high-tech crime, drugs, international organised crime, but we also agreed a 10 point action plan specifically on high-tech crime, new measures on money laundering and financial crime. We underlined the dangers of corruption. We expressed our desire for new measures to tackle the trafficking of human beings, joint law enforcement action and also joint action in respect of firearms trafficking.
DEVELOPMENT AID
In respect of development, this is an area which has obviously caused a lot of interest around the world to our citizens. We made particular effort to get an agreed text on development and aid which has a number of different elements to it. First of all, continuing and substantial aid, not least the right resources for the World Bank, the IMF and the African Development Fund. We agreed new efforts to get all countries to agree to untie aid. Secondly, more debt relief, particularly under the heavily indebted poor countries initiative so that all eligible countries are in the process by the year 2000, and even where the processes are slow, that they can get some form of interim relief which helps them even if the process has not been completed by the year 2000. We also called for the forgiveness of aid-related debt for the least developed countries and we agreed a new initiative to respond to the exceptional needs of post-conflict countries, including early debt relief.
GLOBAL DISEASE
We agreed a major new effort on the world's diseases, particularly malaria where we believe we can cut the death rate very significantly in the next 10 years through new techniques and through the World Health Organisation's roll-back malaria initiative. Britain, I should tell you, this morning has agreed to contribute some 60 million pounds to this and it should have a very significant impact on the poorest, who are the victims of malaria.
ENVIRONMENT
On the environment, we expressed our support for the Kyoto Process, our determination to make it a reality, through both tough domestic action and through international action also, for example through trading mechanisms and through working to draw in the developing countries to the process of environmental protection. We agreed also on the prospect of Russia's membership of the nuclear safety group.
EMPLOYABILITY
In respect of employability, which formed a major part of our discussions yesterday, the G8 Ministers agreed on the principles and national action plans that have been drawn up over this past period of time. We put particular emphasis on tackling social exclusion, the young and long term unemployed particularly, helping small businesses and entrepreneurs, and making sure that the tax and benefit systems were more employment-friendly. I think that was a debate in which it was very clear there was a strong common agenda.
MILLENNIUM BUG
This morning, as well as the other discussions, we discussed particularly the millennium bug, that is the year 2000 computer problem. We agreed that even amongst the G8 there were varying levels of preparation and we agreed also it was vitally important to ensure that we get the right international, as well as national, action through the World Bank Trust Fund, and Britain has committed some 10 million pounds to that, and through the OECD. And we agreed, as the Chairman of the G8, to convene a meeting of each of the individual people that we have appointed in our own countries to co-ordinate action in Moscow, where President Yeltsin made a particularly strong plea as to the importance of action on the millennium bug in his country too, and indeed around the world.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Finally, we issued a statement on Northern Ireland where we expressed our unanimous and warm support for the Good Friday Agreement, and the very clear readiness on behalf of all the countries of the world to help economically, political stability can be assured.
So it was a very full and busy agenda. We agreed that the new format that we adopted this year, effectively to have the Heads of Government restricted to a focused agenda with some concrete steps from it, would continue in future.
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