Our position aligned with G7 on condemnation of Russia in G20 communique: Spanish minister

Bengaluru: Spain's position is very much aligned with the G7 nations' condemnation of Russia, and "we cannot go back on the language that was agreed by our leaders in Bali (G20)", said Nadia Calvino, Spanish Vice-President and Minister for Economy and Digitalization.
Spain is the fifth country after the US, Japan, Germany and France, which said they are not stepping back from the condemnation of Russia in G20 Communique. Calvino said these features in the communique, since the war is right now, are the single most important factor bringing uncertainty and fragility to the world economy.
"I have confidence that the Indian presidency is going to continue to do an excellent job, I will be able to find the maximum in terms of the consensus-building efforts to try to have a communique," Calvino said during a press conference on the sidelines of the first Finance Ministerial and Central Bank of Governors' Meeting under the G20's Indian Presidency.

She said that this meeting in Bengaluru was taking place in a very challenging situation from the global point of view. "One year up to the beginning of the war in Ukraine. The economic outlook is better than in previous meetings," she said, adding that, "We have avoided the worst-case scenarios related to food security and financial stability, but the situation continues to be marked by uncertainty and fragility, especially for most vulnerable countries."
In Spain, the outlook is relatively positive, even in this very complex international situation, she said. "The Spanish economy is showing outstanding strength and resilience with a very strong recovery after the shock generated by the pandemic in 2020," Calvino said.
On Spain's growth, Calvino said gross domestic product (GDP) reached a growth rate of 5.5 per cent both in 2021 and 2022 and the outlook results were positive for 2023 with very positive developments in the labour market.
"Concerning inflation, which is one of the main issues we have been discussing this week, thanks to the drop in international energy prices and the Spanish government's response, inflation dropped by five percentage points in five months and Spain has the lowest inflation rate in the EU," she said

The Spanish minister said the country strongly supports Ukraine and strongly supports a multilateral framework and global safety nets, which is more important than ever. "Conversation and negotiations are getting more difficult due to geopolitical tensions, but we will continue to have a constructive cooperative approach representing Spain," She added.
The minister said that Spain would strongly support the priorities given by the G20's Indian Presidency to the issue of financial inclusion. "We really support the focus on fostering financial inclusion for most vulnerable citizens and SMEs. We thank India's (G20) Presidency. The India presidency is proving to be extremely dedicated professional and also able to manage this challenging situation," she added.
On the debt management issue, Minister said that there was a global agreement on the fact that debt management and tax relief could be very important instruments to provide financial support to the most vulnerable countries.
"Discussions are ongoing and I think we are making progress in the communique with a view to ensuring that there is a multilateral framework, which provides clarity and certainty on how this debt management process is going to be conducted," the Spanish minister said, adding, "There are different views around the table as to how to approach it, but I think it's fair to say there is a common agreement and the shared agreement on the need to include debt relief as one of the instruments that can provide support to most vulnerable countries."
The minister said that IMF has to provide urgent support to these countries (Zambia and Sri Lanka). "But I would say conversations are ongoing on a daily basis. This is not only the milestones that can be reached in these G20 meetings or the spring meetings that will take place in Washington," the Spanish minister said.
She said there were ongoing discussions on a daily basis with a view to finding a solution as soon as possible for these countries that are in the most fragile situation. (ANI)