Better-Structured Dialogue To Strengthen Cooperation With the Emerging Powers
07/02/09
Global challenges demand global answers, thus they demand the involvement of all the players in the new international arena. That is why the Italian G8 Presidency is committed to building a structured rapport with the emerging countries adopting an approach based on inclusion and co-responsibility, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said in a speech he delivered to a seminar organised by Italian employers' confederation Confindustria's Winter University in Venice on 6 February. Frattini stressed Italy's plan to focus the debate on developing countries, with particular reference to Africa.
In addressing such individual issues as the struggle against terrorism or regional crises, the Italian Presidency will be proposing new “variable geometry” formats on each occasion, thus allowing it to bring all of the players concerned into the debate and imbuing the G8 with the kind of flexibility that the multifaceted nature of the challenges demands. Frattini explained that the Italian Presidency has an opportunity to manage the extremely sensitive transition from a "limited responsibility" system to a system based on "shared responsibility".
Frattini stressed that stable and structured dialogue between the G8 member countries and the new emerging economies is going to be crucial in addressing the credit crunch, whose effects are also having a strong impact on the real economy. The economic downturn demands an unprecedented effort on the part of all of the players operating on the international stage: thus not only governments, but also those international organisations called on to devise effective solutions for global problems with increasing rapidity, and society at large which can make a crucial contribution to the debate over ways of emerging from the crisis. In that connection, Frattini also highlighted the role of businesses, which are back in the limelight with the difficulties they are experiencing due to the economic situation, but also with their immense potential for imparting a fresh boost to economic activity.
Continuing to dwell on the economic downturn, Frattini explained that Italy plans to promote a debate involving every aspect of the crisis and helping to ensure that government decisions start focusing on the individual again. Thus the labour ministers' summit that is due to be held in Rome in March is going to focus on the human aspect of the economic crisis, addressing such issues as unemployment, family allowances and worker retraining. “In adopting this approach – the foreign minister said in conclusion – we intend to fill a void in the international community's response to the crisis, at a time when difficult choices inevitably end up having a considerable influence on millions of women's daily lives”.
