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President Türk interviewed by David Frost ahead of G20 summit in London

Ljubljana, 31.3.2009  |  press release




Ahead of the forthcoming summit in London of the most developed and emerging countries (G20), the Slovenian President Dr Danilo Türk expressed his hope that the conference would be a success and emphasised that to reach this goal, problems must be openly addressed. "There should be no fictitious unanimity at the conference," he pointed out. "Certain hard questions should be posed, requiring good answers," he added. The G20 summit was one of the topics Mr Türk spoke of during his interview with the well-known British reporter David Frost for Al Jazeera TV.

Dr Türk said that participants in the London summit should also address the possibility of re-launching the negotiations on world trade liberalisation under the Doha Development Agenda, as this is highly significant for the economic future of the world. President Türk expressed the hope that the European Union would succeed, also at the global level, in countering the protectionist policies while the desire of every country is to find a balance between the stability of the national economy and the co-ordinated EU measures is readily understandable. It has to be emphasised that protectionism will not help any country.

The Slovenian President also pointed out that the consequences of the global economic crisis which began at the centre of the world economy may have the greatest impact on the least developed countries, and reminded of the need to consider the warnings of the UN Secretary-General related to a potential humanitarian disaster. President Türk recalled the importance of reform of the international financial system, including the International Monetary Fund. The IMF requires both more funds and structural change.

Mr Frost, who hosts the "Frost Over the World" current affairs programme, was also interested in hearing about current relations between Slovenia and Croatia. Dr Türk reiterated his belief that the European Commission’s proposal for mediation brings hope of a creative settlement of the difficulties between the two countries. He went on to explain that Slovenia looked forward to Croatia joining the European Union as soon as possible, adding that he also hoped that Croatia would accept the Commission’s proposals to help solve the problem.

The programme has already hosted some of the world's leading political figures, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Israeli President Shimon Peres, former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. Mr Frost has also interviewed the past seven American presidents, six British prime ministers, Nelson Mandela, Prince Charles, former Russian President Vladimir Putin and many other world leaders.

The entire interview between Slovenian President Danilo Türk and David Frost can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPePFMyynu4 or on the website of the Al Jazeera news network.





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