Saudi Arabia's King Salman kicks off virtual G20 Summit; read full remarks here

Kickstarting the virtual G20 Summit on Thursday, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud called upon member nations to form an effective and coordinated response to COVID-19 and restore confidence in the global economy. Mentioning that the novel coronavirus had caused tremendous suffering to many people around the world, he reaffirmed support for the WHO in coordinating the efforts to counter this pandemic. He observed that the G20 must take responsibility for financing the research and development of a vaccine for COVID-19. This emergency G20 Summit was convened by Saudi Arabia in the wake of the novel coronavirus crisis. PM Modi is also taking part in the Summit. 

In his opening remarks, Saudi Arabia's King Salman also opined that the G20 member nations must extend help to developing and least developed nations. Citing the G20’s feat in mitigating the severity of the global financial crisis in the past, he exuded confidence that the future would be positive for mankind. Furthermore, he called for the early resumption of the normal flow of goods and services to send a strong signal to the global economy.

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Currently, the confirmed COVID-19 cases in Saudi Arabia have surged to 1012. Several international organizations including the United Nations, World Bank, the WHO, and the World Trade Organization are also attending the Summit. Moreover, the regional organizations are being represented by Vietnam, the Chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); South Africa, the Chair of the African Union (AU); the United Arab Emirates, the Chair of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC); and Rwanda, the Chair of the New Partnership for Africa's Development. 

Read the full remarks of Saudi Arabia's King Salman here:

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The novel coronavirus crisis

First detected in Wuhan in December 2019, COVID-19- the novel coronavirus has affected 197 countries in the world. Presently, there are 4,16,686 confirmed cases of COVID-19 which has led to the death of 18,589 people. As there is no vaccine or specific antiviral medicine to deal to treat COVID-19, countries have been grappling with all possible mechanisms to contain its scope. So far, China, Italy, the US, and Spain have witnessed the most number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus. India has recorded 593 active novel coronavirus cases till now. 

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