ROME — The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, who virtually heads the Kingdom's delegation to the G20 Leaders Summit, reiterated the fact that the pandemic called for G20 to play a pivotal role in taking the lead in taking unprecedented measures in dealing with the circumstances.

King Salman made this point in his speech at the first session entitled "Global Economy and Health", during the G20 Leaders Summit that began Saturday in Rome, Italy.

King Salman, at the outset, began by thanking the Italian premier. “I would like to thank you, Prime Minister, for your continuing efforts to make the agenda of this year's G20 a success, noting the vital topics included in your presidency program.

“The circumstances of the pandemic required activating the pivotal role that must be played by the G20 members. Indeed, the member states took unprecedented measures to deal with these circumstances.

“In this regard, last year, with your efforts and cooperation, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia led the international response to this pandemic and its health, economic and social impacts.

Now, over 20 months since the outbreak of this pandemic, it still casts its shadow on the global economy. Despite the recovery journey that began in some economies, low-income countries still face challenges in accessing and distributing vaccines.

“Here lies the importance of the G20 role to promote cooperation and facilitate access to the vaccines,” King Salman said.

With regard to the Kingdom's dealing with the pandemic, the policies and measures that we have taken since the beginning of the crisis have contributed to mitigating the health, economic, and social impacts of the pandemic and have helped to achieve rapid recovery, King Salman said.

Speaking on climate change, the King said: “The Kingdom shares with the countries of the world the concern about the challenges of climate change, as well as its economic and social impacts. The Kingdom will continue its pioneering role in providing the world with clean energy, by supporting more innovation and development.

“We call for more sustainable and comprehensive solutions that take into account the different circumstances of our countries. The Kingdom will continue its leading role in economic and health upturn and recovery from the global crises, and in finding a balance to achieve security and stability in energy markets.”

The King then rounded off his speech by calling for multilateral cooperation globally. “Finally, we look forward to more multilateral cooperation to achieve well-being and prosperity in our countries and in the entire world,” he stressed.

The Kingdom’s participating delegation included Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy prime minister and minister of defense; Dr. Musaad Bin Mohammed Al-Aiban, minister of state and Cabinet member; and Dr. Ibrahim Bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, minister of state and Cabinet member.

It also included the Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Bin Fadel Al-Ibrahim and the Assistant Special Secretary to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Tamim Bin Abdulaziz Al-Salem.

The Kingdom's delegation in Rome also includes Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal Bin Farhan Bin Abdullah; Minister of Finance Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan; t Minister of Health Fahd bin Abdulrahamn Al-Jalajel; the Governor of the Saudi Central Bank Fahad Bin Abdullah Al-Mubarak, who is the Saudi Sherpa. — SPA