Bali Declaration Highlights Ukrainian War, Economic Impacts as G20 Summit Ends
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has officially ended the G20 Summit. Indonesia, in its G20 presidency, was able to issue the Bali Declaration. The statement also highlights the conditions of the war in Ukraine.
By
AGNES THEODORA, DEONISIA ARLINTA
·5 minutes read
AFP/POOL/MAST IRHAM
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (R) gestures as US President Joe Biden (front L), German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (back L), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (back C) and other leaders walk together during a tree planting event at the Taman Hutan Raya Ngurah Rai Mangrove Forest, on the sidelines of the G20 summit meeting in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on November 16, 2022.
NUSA DUA, KOMPAS – The Group of 20 Summit in Nusa Dua, Badung, Bali, officially ended on Wednesday (16/11/2022) afternoon local time. In the midst of heated geopolitical tensions, this meeting of leaders of the countries with the world's largest economies issued a declaration that highlighted the conditions of the war in Ukraine and noted the importance of peace and multilateralism.
The Leaders’ Declaration, which was distributed to the media, was 1,186 pages long. It contained, among other things, 52 paragraph points from G20 leaders. The remainder contained attachments, chair summaries and final reports from all working group meetings, ministerial meetings, and engagement groups from the past year.
The declaration also highlighted the war in Ukraine and its significant weakening effect on the global economy. The statement was contained in the text's third paragraph, which stated that most of the G20 member countries condemned the war in Ukraine.
They emphasized that the war had resulted in human suffering and that it had exacerbated global economic fragility. It had hampered economic growth, boosted inflation, disrupted supply chains, exacerbated the energy and food crisis and increased uncertainty in the global financial system.
The declaration also noted that a number of G20 member countries had different views and other assessments regarding the current geopolitical situation and its relation to the economic sanctions war between Western countries and Russia.
MEDIA CENTER G20/ADITYA PRADANA PUTRA
President Joko Widodo (left) welcomes United States President Joe Biden to a mangrove tree nursery at Ngurah Rai Grand Forest Park on the second day of the G20 Indonesia Summit in Denpasar, Bali, on Wednesday (16/11/2022).
"While remaining aware that the G20 is not a forum for resolving defense-related issues, we underline that defense issues can have significant consequences for the global economy," the third paragraph of the declaration read.
The fourth paragraph continued the statement regarding current geopolitical issues. It stated that the international legal system and multilateralism to maintain peace and stability needed to be upheld in the midst of the current situation. This included defending the principles set out in the United Nations Charter and international humanitarian law, such as protecting the security of civilians and infrastructure in armed conflict.
the Bali Declaration also contained the commitment of G20 leaders to take appropriate and important steps to address current global challenges that included international macro policy cooperation and concrete collaboration.
"Threats and the use of nuclear weapons cannot be tolerated. Peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to overcome crises and diplomatic means through dialogue are very important. This is not an era of war," the declaration read.
In addition to a statement on the current geopolitical situation, the Bali Declaration also contained the commitment of G20 leaders to take appropriate and important steps to address current global challenges that included international macro policy cooperation and concrete collaboration. G20 leaders committed to continuing to support developing countries, especially vulnerable small island nations, in facing global challenges and to achieving sustainable development targets.
At the close of the G20 Summit, the President said Indonesia's presidency of the G20 had begun with the hope of creating unity through a common intention of realizing an inclusive global recovery from the pandemic. However, various challenges had arisen along the way that not only hampered the prospects for economic recovery but also threatened to plunge the world into a deeper crisis.
AFP/LUDOVIC MARIN
US President Joe Biden (center) holds an emergency meeting with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian PM Giorgina Meloni, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Union Council President Charles Michel, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to discuss a missile attack on Ukraine and an explosion in a village in Poland that bordered Ukraine. The meeting was held on Wednesday (16/11/2022) on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali.
In its first year of leadership, Indonesia sought the best solutions. "Today, we can adopt and ratify the G20 Bali Leaders' Declaration. This is the first declaration that has been realized since February 2022 [when Russia invaded Ukraine]," President Jokowi said on Wednesday.
The last day of the G20 Summit was overshadowed by geopolitical tensions that had heated up in the aftermath of an explosion in a village in Poland that bordered Ukraine. There has so far been no certainty that the explosion came from a Russian missile, although on the same day, Russia fired 90 missiles toward Kyiv and Lviv. On Wednesday morning, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, members of the Group of Seven, member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and members of the European Union held an emergency meeting to address the incident in Poland.
Handing Over Leadership
The President also expressed his appreciation that all parties had been willing to sit together and set aside their differences to reach an agreement in the Bali Declaration. "I would like to express my highest appreciation to all those present that have provided flexibility so that this declaration could be agreed upon and ratified," he said.
It was on this occasion that President Jokowi handed over the reins of leadership to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will hold the G20 presidency in 2023. Indonesia is committed to participating in overseeing the success of the Indian presidency. President Jokowi also invited the G20 leaders who were present to support India in its presidency next year.
The leadership of the G20 will be held by developing countries in the coming years. The presidency in 2023 will be held by India, after which it will be continued by Brazil in 2024.
MEDIA CENTER G20 INDONESIA/SIGID KURNIAWAN
President Joko Widodo (right) welcomes the arrival of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the location of the G20 Indonesia Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Tuesday (15/11/2022).
"The mandate to maintain and realize a global recovery and further strong and inclusive growth rests with His Excellency Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As a friend of India and as a part of the troika, Indonesia is ready to support the success of India's presidency," President Jokowi said.
In addition to giving birth to the Bali Declaration, the G20 forum has also succeeded in producing concrete deliverables that contain a list of cooperation projects between G20 member countries and invited countries. President Jokowi said these cooperative projects would help the leaders of every country ground the results of the work done by the G20 so that they can be closer to the people.
"[This is] to ensure that the G20 is beneficial, not only for its members but also for the world, especially developing countries," the President said.
