Lee attends G-20 summit with call against premature exit plans

By Byun Duk-kun
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, Sept. 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee
Myung-bak, joining world leaders Friday in a forum tackling the global economic
crisis, reiterated warnings against premature exit plans, his office said.
"President Lee reminded G-20 leaders of the risk of a double-dip recession
involved with premature discussions of an exit strategy," Seoul's presidential
office, Cheong Wa Dae, said.
South Korea was chosen as the host for the fifth conference of the 20-member
forum in November, following a session in June in Canada.
In his remarks, Lee emphasized the G-20 must continue to exercise leadership even
after the global crisis comes to an end, saying the world could face more serious
post-crisis problems, Cheong Wa Dae said.
A consistent agenda for the South Korean leader throughout the conference has
been the institutionalization of the economic summit, launched late last year in
the wake of a financial debacle affecting developed and developing countries
alike.
One of the potentially damaging issues is global imbalance, vividly seen in the
over- and under-representation of advanced and newly emerging economies at
international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund
(IMF) and the World Bank, Lee was quoted as saying.
"Noting there was no doubt the world has to rebalance its economy for sustainable
growth, President Lee stressed the need for detailed action plans by the IMF
after thorough studies," Cheong Wa Dae said.
The president also called on G-20 leaders to reaffirm their commitment to free
trade, it said.
"Saying the importance of free trade and efforts to fight trade protectionism
cannot be overstated, the president proposed the leaders recommit themselves to a
standstill and rollback on protectionism," Cheong Wa Dae said.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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