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17 November 2001

Text: G-20 Finance Ministers Agree on Actions to Stop Terrorist Financing

(Say they will work to help poor countries recovery (2100)
The G-20 finance ministers and central bank governors agreed at their
annual meeting on an action plan to deny terrorists and their
associates access to their financial markets.
In a communiqué at the end of their November 16-17 meeting in Ottawa,
Canada, the ministers also said they welcome the Doha Development
Agenda agreed to at the World Trade Organization ministerial
conference November 14. They said they look forward to working with
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank to ensure that
appropriate international support is available to complement sound
policies needed to generate economic recovery of the world's poorest
countries, whose economies have been hard hit by the terrorist attacks
September 11th.
Members of the G-20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China,
France, Germany, India, Indonesia¸ Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico,
Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United
States and the European Union -- plus the IMF and World Bank.
The finance ministers said they will work with the International
Finance Institutions (IFIs), Financial Action Task Force (FATF),
Financial Stability Forum (FSF) and other international bodies to
prevent abuses to the international financial system.
In addition, each member committed to:
-- Implement the relevant U.N. Security Council Resolutions,
particularly UNSCR 1373, to stop the financing of terrorism.
-- Freeze assets of terrorists and their associates within their
jurisdictions and close their access to the international financing
system.
-- Make public lists of terrorists whose assets are subject to
freezing and the amounts of assets frozen.
They also promised to establish immediately a Financial Intelligence
Unit (FIU) and enhance cooperation on the international exchange of
information. They promised to provide technical assistance to
countries that need help developing and implement the necessary laws
and policies to combat terrorist financing. They also said they will
actively support surveillance and voluntary self-assessment.
The finance ministers also said they would continue to promote
adoption of international standards for transparency, macroeconomic
policy, sound financial sector regulation and corporate governance to
strengthen the integrity of the international financial system.
To reduce susceptibility in financial crisis, they said they would
continue to work on appropriate exchange rate regimes, prudent
liability management and orderly capital account liberalization.
Following is the text of the G-20 communiqué and action plan:
(begin communiqué)
G-20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors
We, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20, held
our third meeting today in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada against the
backdrop of a global economic slowdown whose effects have been
exacerbated by the tragic events of September 11th, 2001.
The barbarous attacks on the United States were attacks on all of us
intended to shake global economic confidence and security. We will
ensure that these efforts fail.
We are committed to combating terrorism by cutting off its financial
sources. There should be no safe havens for the financing of
terrorism. To this end, we have agreed on an Action Plan to deny
terrorists and their associates access to our financial systems. We
call on other countries to take similar steps.
We are confident that the attacks of September 11 will not undermine
our future economic prospects. We have taken policy actions to
maintain liquidity and stabilize markets. We stand ready to take
additional actions as necessary. These measures will provide the
foundation for an early resumption of growth without undermining our
future economic prospects. We agreed that heightened security measures
should be implemented in a manner that facilitates the cross-border
flow of legitimate trade in goods and services. We reaffirm our
commitment to free trade and open international markets as a key
source of global prosperity. In this context, we welcome the Doha
Development Agenda agreed to at the WTO Ministerial Conference launch
of a new WTO trade round and commit to work together to achieve
multilateral trade liberalisation that accelerates progress against
poverty and promotes growth.
The reduction of capital flows to emerging markets underscores the
need for sound policies to provide and to maintain a positive
investment environment in member countries. We remain committed to
this endeavour. Adopting the best practices embodied in international
standards and codes also will help support strong, stable growth and
reduce the risk of future financial crises. A majority of G-20 members
have already participated, on a voluntary basis, in assessments under
one or both of the IMF/World Bank-led Financial Sector Assessment
Program (FSAP) and Reports on Observances with Standards and Codes
(ROSCs) consistent with our undertaking at our inaugural meeting in
Berlin in December 1999. We will continue to promote adoption of
international standards and codes for transparency, macroeconomic
policy, sound financial sector regulation and corporate governance in
consultation as appropriate with relevant international bodies and
with the private sector, and thereby strengthen the integrity of the
international financial system. We will continue our work on
appropriate exchange rate regimes, prudent liability management, and
orderly liberalization of the capital account. These efforts reduce
susceptibility to financial crises.
Borrowing countries, creditors and the international community have a
common interest in efficient and well-functioning international
capital markets. We would welcome the earliest possible resolution of
Argentina's debt problem. We recognize that lenders are increasingly
differentiating between different international borrowers, be they
private or sovereign. Good communication between borrowers and their
creditors can play an important role in sustaining capital flows to
emerging markets. Building on the recent G-20 Roundtable with private
sector representatives on promoting efficient international capital
markets, we have asked our Deputies to report to our next meeting on
improving the way financial crises are resolved, taking into account
the lessons learned from experience in emerging markets. A common
objective is to reduce uncertainty and ensure the sustainability of
capital flows to emerging markets.
We recognize that the world's poorest and most vulnerable are facing
acute challenges in the midst of the global economic slowdown, in
particular the increased uncertainty resulting from the terrorist
attacks. We look forward to participating constructively in the
International Monetary and Finance Committee and Development Committee
meetings with a view to ensuring that appropriate international
support is available to complement the sound national policies needed
to generate economic recovery in those countries most affected.
Building on our discussion at our last meeting in Montreal, we
reviewed our experiences in responding to the challenges of
globalization. We agreed that greater economic integration has led to
demonstrable improvements in living standards for the vast majority of
our citizens. The G-20 and other countries that have integrated into
the global system have in general made significant progress in raising
real incomes and reducing poverty. But globalization also poses a
number of challenges and risks, which call for enhanced international
co-operation. We recognise the need to work with the international
financial institutions and World Trade Organisation to ensure that the
benefits of globalisation are shared by all, including the poorest
countries. To obtain the full benefits of globalization, our
governments have a critical role in creating well-developed domestic
institutions, good governance and sound domestic macroeconomic,
social, and structural policies. As reflected in the Montreal
Consensus, by sustaining such policies we ensure that our economies
are better able to maximize the contribution of open markets to
growth, equity, and well-being for all our peoples.
We accepted the generous invitation of India's Finance Minister Sinha
to hold our 2002 meeting in New Delhi.
(end communiqué)
(begin action plan)
G-20 Action Plan on Terrorist Financing
We, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20, in
the name of global peace and security, are determined to stop the
financing of terrorism. The fight against terrorist financing is a
shared responsibility of the G-20 and the broader international
community. We have therefore adopted today a comprehensive Action Plan
of multilateral cooperation to deny terrorists and their associates
access to, or use of, our financial systems, and to stop abuse of
informal banking networks.
We will implement quickly and decisively measures that the United
Nations have identified as essential to combating terrorist financing.
We will block terrorists' access to our financial system. We will work
with the International Financial Institutions (IFIs), the Financial
Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF), the Financial Stability
Forum (FSF) and other relevant international bodies to prevent abuses
to the financial system and threats to its integrity through the
promotion of international standards relevant to terrorist financing,
money laundering and financial sector regulation and supervision. We
welcome the conclusions of the recent FATF extraordinary plenary on
terrorist financing. Above all, we will enhance our ability to share
information domestically and internationally as a vital component in
the fight against terrorism.
We encourage all nations to join the international effort to choke off
the financing of terrorism. Where a country's willingness outstrips
its ability to act in concert with us, we will provide technical
assistance in accordance with this Action Plan.
In pursuing these commitments, we have agreed to the following
concrete steps:
Freezing Terrorist Assets
-- Each G-20 member will implement the relevant UN Security Council
Resolutions, particularly UNSCR 1373, to stop the financing of
terrorism.
-- To this end, each G-20 member will, within its jurisdiction, freeze
the assets of terrorists and their associates and close their access
to the international financial system.
-- Each G-20 member will, consistent with its laws, make public the
lists of terrorists whose assets are subject to freezing, and the
amount of assets frozen, if any.
-- Implementation of International Standards
-- Each G-20 member will ratify and implement the UN Convention for
the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism as soon as possible.
-- Each G-20 member will ratify the UN Convention against
Transnational Organized Crime.
-- We will work co-operatively and in collaboration with the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, FATF, FSF, Basle
Committee of Banking Supervisors (BCBS), and other relevant
international bodies to promote the adoption, implementation, and
assessment of international standards to combat the abuses of the
financial system, including in respect of terrorist financing,
financial regulation, and money laundering. We welcome FATF's offer to
work collaboratively with us in implementing eight special
recommendations on terrorist financing.
International Cooperation: Exchange of Information and Outreach
-- We will enhance our cooperation on the international exchange of
information, including regarding actions taken under UN resolutions.
G-20 member countries will promptly implement such measures as are
necessary to facilitate this exchange.
-- Each G-20 member will establish promptly, or maintain, a Financial
Intelligence Unit and will take steps to enhance information sharing
among them, including through promoting universal participation in the
Egmont Group of such units.
-- We will promote the fight against terrorist financing within our
respective regions, and will ask other countries to join this Action
Plan.
-- An important element of this effort is the work of the regional
FATF-style anti-money laundering bodies. Accordingly, the G-20 calls
on these regional bodies to meet promptly and to expand their mandates
to include terrorist financing.
Technical Assistance
-- We are committed to providing, where possible, technical assistance
to countries that need help in developing and implementing necessary
laws, regulations and policies to combat terrorist financing and money
laundering.
-- We call on the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and
other multilateral and regional organizations to provide technical
assistance, including by expanding existing programs and training
centres.
Compliance and Reporting
-- To promote implementation and compliance with international
standards, and to share information regarding our respective laws,
regulations, and best practices to address terrorist financing, we
will support the activities of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee. We
will also actively support surveillance and voluntary self-assessment
through the IFIs, FATF and relevant international bodies.
-- We will respond positively to the FATF's invitation to participate
in a self-assessment of the eight special recommendations on terrorist
financing.
-- We encourage the FSF to undertake work respecting the actions of
financial sector regulators in the fight against terrorism at its next
meeting.
-- We will ensure that our financial institutions and citizens comply
with measures to combat the financing of terrorism and other financial
crimes, and will assist them to do so, including through informing
financial institutions of their obligations and new developments.
-- We urge the regional FATF-style bodies to actively contribute to
the FATF's worldwide self-assessment program.
-- We will review our progress on this action plan at our next
Ministerial meeting.
(end action plan)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)



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