MOSCOW, July 27 Russia, at a meeting of the heads of central banks and ministries of finance of the G20 countries in Brazil, announced a deterioration in the situation with the growing public debt in the world, it is necessary to avoid the approach of a systemic debt crisis, reports the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation.
The third meeting of the heads of the G20 finance ministries and central banks took place on July 25-26, with Deputy Finance Minister of the Russian Federation Ivan Chebeskov taking part. The heads of the financial departments discussed the situation in the global economy, international tax reform, sustainable financing, increased debt vulnerability, and the reform of multilateral development banks. The G20 countries were the first since February 2022 to adopt a communiqué exclusively on financial issues without assessing the geopolitical situation in the world.
«»Among the key risks, the meeting participants noted the growth of global debt and high levels of budget deficits, continued high inflation and associated budget risks, fluctuations in commodity prices amid geopolitical upheavals, fragmentation and weakening of trade ties between countries,» the statement said.
«Debt servicing is becoming more expensive, while we should not forget that most countries that are experiencing debt-related difficulties have low and middle incomes. This does not allow us to direct the necessary resources to development, structural reforms, financing of the most important sectors of the economy and achieving sustainable development goals,» Chebeskov noted, his words are quoted in the report.
Of particular concern, as the deputy minister noted, is the lack of attention from countries to the very high and continuing to grow level of debt in developed countries. «In addition to resolving issues with debt restructuring, joint comprehensive actions are required to prevent the approach of a systemic debt crisis,» Chebeskov said.
In addition, special attention was paid during the meeting to the reform of the taxation of profits of international groups of companies — for the first time, the finance ministers approved a separate Declaration on cooperation in the field of international taxation.
In addition, during the meeting, a decision was also made to create a Global Alliance to Fight Hunger and Poverty, which is also one of the key priorities of the Brazilian presidency.
“Thanks to Brazil’s constructive approach, for the first time since February 2022, it was possible to adopt a communiqué of the finance ministers and central bank governors of the Group of 20 without assessing the geopolitical situation in the world and exclusively on financial issues,” the statement said.
The next meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors will be held in October of this year on the sidelines of the Annual Meeting of the Governing Bodies of the IMF and the World Bank.