With the 19th G20 Summit underway in Rio de Janeiro, leaders of the 20 top economies of the world called for an end to the hostilities in Middle East and Ukraine and more aid to these war torn regions of the world.
The 2024 G20 Declaration also called for a pact to fight global hunger and poverty, efficient taxation for billionaires and a push for reforms in global governance.
The G20 Summit 2024 kicked off in in Brazil on November 18. Leaders such as US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Italian PM Giorgia Meloni and other leaders of the G20 nations are present for the two-day summit.G20 Brazil also marks the first such summit for new member - the African Union
What's In The G20 Rio Declaration?
Condemnation Of Wars And A Call For Peace
In 2022, the world saw a war break out after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. A year later, another war in the Middle East began after militant group Hamas launched a terror attack in southern Israel on October 7.
As both wars continue to rage and escalate, the G20 declaration has called for a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine.
Since Israel declared war on Hamas, the Palestinian territories of the Gaza Strip and West Bank have been bombarded by the Israeli military. Along with Palestine, the war has now spilt over to Lebanon, where Israel waged a war against the militant group Hezbollah.
In Gaza, over 43,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023. Of this, the majority of the deaths have been attributed to women and children. Meanwhile, in Lebanon, over 3,500 people have been killed due to Israel's bombardment.
The G20 declaration refers to the “catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and the escalation in Lebanon,” and added on the urgent need to expand humanitarian assistance and reinforce the protection of civilians.
“Affirming the Palestinian right to self-determination, we reiterate our unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution where Israel and a Palestinian State live side by side in peace,” it added further.
Despite the call for peace, the declaration is yet to mention the release of Israeli hostages being held captive by Hamas.
Moving to the Russia-Ukraine war, the US called and supported Ukraine's sovereignty. This support comes days after Joe Biden approved the use of long-range missiles for Ukraine.
Russian President Putin remained absent from the summit due to the arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court. Since the war broke out, Vladimir Putin has largely been absent from global meetings.
In the declaration, direct blame is not cast on the aggressors - Israel or Russia - but, it focuses on the escalation of the humanitarian crisis in both wars.
Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty
On the first day of the G20 Summit, Brazil's President Lula da Silva launched the "Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty". A global pact to fight hunger and poverty was one of the key objectives for Brazil as the president of the 19th G20 Summit.
This alliance has already received the backing of 81 countries, 26 international organisations, nine financial organisations and 31 NGOs. As per Lula, "those who have been invisible will now be at the centre of international agenda".
"Hunger and poverty are not caused by scarcity or natural phenomena but result from political decisions perpetuating the exclusion of a significant part of humanity. It is up to those who are here to put an end to this scourge that shames society," the Brazilian president added further.
Taxing The Rich
From the working group meetings to the G20 leaders summit, the Brazilian presidency has worked towards ensuring global billionaires are taxed properly.
In the leader's declaration, Brazil has proposed to tax billionaires' incomes by two percent. This call for efficient taxation made its way into the declaration.
"With full respect to tax sovereignty, we will seek to engage cooperatively to ensure that ultra-high-net-worth individuals are effectively taxed. Cooperation could involve exchanging best practices, encouraging debates around tax principles, and devising ant avoidance mechanisms, including addressing potentially harmful tax practices," reads the document.
Reforms For Global Governance
Since the escalation of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, countries all across the world have called for drastic reform in the United Nations, citing that the intergovernmental organisation has been rendered useless and inactive.
The UN, which was formed after the Second World War, has not changed its format since, especially in the Security Council. Since 1945, China, the United States, Russia, France and the UK have retained their seats as permanent members of the UNSC.
However, the membership of the P5 is now being questioned by many, especially those seeking more representation in the council.
These ideas found their way into the G20 Brazil declaration, which called for "an enlarged Security Council composition that improves the representation of the underrepresented and unrepresented regions and groups, such as Africa, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean".
