Clinton Focuses G-7 on Jobs, Trade
09 July 1994
APLES, Italy -- President Bill Clinton put jobs and free trade on top of the agenda for a Group of Seven summit in Naples on Friday, saying it should not be sidetracked into panic moves to support a sagging U.S. dollar. At a keynote pre-summit news conference Clinton appeared not to favor interest rate hikes or other abrupt measures of the sort that may crimp economic activity in order to lift the dollar from 50-year lows against Japan's yen. "It would be a mistake for us to change the fundamental objective ... which is to pursue global growth," Clinton said, adding, "It is important not to overreact." This quenched speculation the G-7 summit that was opening later on Friday with a banquet in Naples's 12th-century Castel DellOvo fortress can make coordinated monetary intervention. Leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, joined later by President Boris Yeltsin, will contemplate an array of global anxieties. These range from war in the Balkans through nuclear safety in Ukraine, site of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, to the scourge of mass unemployment. Dramatic initiatives are unlikely. Italian leaks on a summit economic communiqu?, that is already in draft form, further confirmed that the leaders at capitalism's "high table" will wave no magic wand. They are likely to deliver plans for between $5 and $6 billion of aid for Ukraine as a reward for dismantling its nuclear complex. But on wider economic issues, they will grimly conclude that the present global recovery from recession alone will not suffice to create jobs for their 24 million unemployed. Clinton flew to Naples stressing the importance of freer trade. The United States particularly wants Japan to open up its market to U.S. and other foreign goods and reduce its huge trade surplus, seen at around $130 billion in 1993/94. Clinton shared his news conference with new Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama with whom he had discussed these issues at a bilateral pre-summit meeting. "My candid answer would have to be, no," Clinton said, when asked if he was happy with progress thus far on a U.S.-Japan trade accord. But he conceded that Japan had recently been in political turmoil. Prospects might now be better for resumed talks. Murayama, 70, Japan's first socialist premier since 1948, took power only this month as leader of a vulnerable coalition. He vowed to extend a 1994 tax-cutting program into 1995 in efforts to kick-start economic policies to boost consumer spending so that the Japanese buy more foreign goods. Yeltsin joins the G-7 leaders on Sunday for talks on a political agenda. That meeting is expected to endorse a peace plan to split Bosnia roughly 50-50 between Serbs and a Moslem-Croat federation. But it is uncertain whether big power endorsement will guarantee that all Bosnian factions accept the plan, seen as a last chance to end the bloodshed and remove a threat of wider Balkan war.
|
|
Tweet |
|
This article has no comments. Be the first to leave a comment |
Discussion
Comments
To post comments you must be registered
Comments via Facebook
Most Read
1.
City Mistakenly Plants Marijuana Field Instead of Lawn
After the city spread soil containing "grass" seeds around the Brateyevo metro station, a field of marijuana plants sprouted up instead of a lawn.
2.
Ruble Hits Lowest Rate in 3 Years
The ruble dipped to a three-year low Thursday as oil prices fell further.
3.
Superjet Flight Data Recorder Found Near Volcano Crash Site
Villagers have found the flight data recorder from the Russian plane that slammed into an Indonesian volcano three weeks ago, killing 45 people.
4.
Putin's Foreign Policy Goes on the Road
In a symbolic gesture, President Vladimir Putin on Thursday arrived in Minsk to pay his first foreign visit as head of state to controversial Belarussian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
5.
Duma Deputy Robbed at Ritzy Hotel
State Duma Deputy Gennady Gudkov was robbed at the upscale Hotel National across from the street from the Kremlin after a conference, Gudkov said Wednesday evening.
6.
European Debt Crisis Driving Workers East
Despite its inconveniences, Moscow has become a magnet for foreign job-seekers, as unemployment in Europe is hitting record highs amid the debt crisis.
7.
China-Russia Airplane Venture Planned
United Aircraft Corporation and Chinese Commercial Aircraft Corporation plan to start a joint venture to develop long-haul aircraft.
8.
Police Arrest Young Men for Murder of Japanese Motorcyclist
Investigators say two men aged 20 and 21 stabbed a Japanese motorcyclist to death in order to steal his belongings.
9.
Russian Railways in Smoking Crackdown, Privatization Freeze
Smokers will find train journeys longer and a tad more frustrating as traditional indulgence of the habit is phased out on Russian Railways' passenger routes.
10.
Russian Reserve Colonel Convicted of Spying for U.S.
A Russian court has convicted a reserve colonel of spying on behalf of the United States and sentenced him to 12 years in prison.
1.
City Mistakenly Plants Marijuana Field Instead of Lawn
After the city spread soil containing "grass" seeds around the Brateyevo metro station, a field of marijuana plants sprouted up instead of a lawn.
2.
McFaul Faces Kremlin Scorn Once Again
The Foreign Ministry assailed U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul for comments the ministry said went "far beyond the bounds of diplomatic etiquette."
3.
Sweden Wins Eurovision; Grannies Take Second
Sweden’s Loreen won the Eurovision Song Contest in Azerbaijan on Sunday before an international TV audience of 100 million, days after angering Azeri authorities by meeting rights activists critical of the host country’s human rights record.
4.
Ukraine in Uproar Over Status of Russian Language
Ukraine's ruling party has triggered violent protests with a move to upgrade the official role of Russian, a sensitive issue opponents say will split the country.
5.
150 Detained at Anti-Kremlin Rallies
About 150 people were detained Sunday as scores of people gathered for a series of anti-government demonstrations in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
6.
Vkontakte Founder Tosses 5,000-Ruble Notes Out Window
<p>The founder of the social networking site Vkontakte celebrated St. Petersburg’s 309th anniversary over the weekend by tossing paper airplanes carrying 5,000-ruble notes out a building window.</p>
7.
U.S.-Russian 3-Year Multientry Visa Bill to Go to Duma
After months of delays, the government has finalized a much-touted visa agreement with the United States and drafted the corresponding bill.
8.
Kennan's Insight Into the Russian Soul
George Kennan is best known as the author of the containment policy, which served as the overarching principle informing U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War.
9.
TNK-BP Head Quits as Shareholder Crisis Flares
Billionaire Mikhail Fridman resigned Monday as chief executive of TNK-BP, plunging the country's No. 3 oil firm deeper into crisis and challenging co-owner BP's grip on the business.
10.
McFaul and State Department Respond to Attack
The U.S. ambassador and the U.S. State Department said they were surprised by blistering criticism from the Foreign Ministry regarding comments McFaul made to students last week.
1.
Hundreds of Arrests Set Grim Backdrop for Victory Day Celebrations
As Moscow gears up to celebrate its victory in World War II, 67 years ago Wednesday, the shadow of political conflict shrouds the capital as hundreds of arrests cloud Victory Day festivities.
2.
Russian Satellite Takes Highest-Ever Resolution Picture of Earth
A stunning 121-megapixel snapshot of the Earth was taken by a Russian weather satellite in what is thought to be the highest resolution picture of the planet ever taken from space.
3.
Bodies, No Survivors Spotted at Superjet Crash
Search and rescue helicopters and volunteers struggling through thick forest and mountainous terrain spotted bodies but no survivors on the Indonesian mountainside where a Sukhoi Superjet 100 crashed by the time darkness forced an end to the search Thursday night.
4.
City Mistakenly Plants Marijuana Field Instead of Lawn
After the city spread soil containing "grass" seeds around the Brateyevo metro station, a field of marijuana plants sprouted up instead of a lawn.
5.
Tabloid: Superjet Downed by U.S. Industrial Sabotage
A tabloid claims that Russian intelligence agencies are investigating the possibility that the U.S. military may have brought down the Sukhoi Superjet that crashed in Indonesia.
6.
Mysterious Photos Reveal an Unseen WWII
After the end of World War II, Paul Sadler returned home to Chicago with three German books and a photo album from the Dachau concentration camp.
7.
Furniture Magnate Shot Dead in Mercedes in Moscow Region
A 46-year-old furniture magnate was killed with six gunshot wounds to the head and chest early Sunday as he arrived in his Mercedes at his home in the Moscow region.
8.
New Cabinet Has Familiar Cast of Characters
President Vladimir Putin on Monday announced the makeup of the new Cabinet answering to Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, with three-fourths of the members having been replaced.
9.
Vladivostok Bridge Climbers Fined 300 Rubles Each
Three thrill-seekers who climbed two Vladivostok bridges earlier this week and took photos from the top were fined 300 rubles ($10) each for trespassing.
10.
Superjet Missing in Indonesia With 50 on Board
A dark cloud was cast Wednesday on the revival of Russia’s aviation industry when a Sukhoi-built Superjet 100 with 50 people on board disappeared from the radar screens of Indonesian flight controllers.


