G20 leaders opened their first in-person summit in two years

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi welcomes President Joe Biden

 

The first in-person G20 summit opens in two years, calling for more COVID vaccines for developing nations as climate and the economy top the world leaders' concerns list

G20 leaders opened their first in-person summit in two years on Saturday with a call for more COVID vaccines for developing countries

Climate and the global economy topped the list of G20 leaders' priorities

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi opened the leaders' session with a call for more vaccines to combat the coronavirus pandemic

G20 leaders opened their first in-person summit in two years on Saturday, calling for more COVID vaccines for developing countries amid persistent concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

Climate and the global economy also topped the list of priorities for the world's most prominent economic leaders.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi greeted President Joe Biden and other heads of state at the cloud-like Novola Convention Center in Rome.

The forum opened with a call to redouble efforts to deliver vaccines to the least prosperous countries in the world.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi welcomes President Joe Biden to arrive for the G20 Leaders Summit at the La Nuvola Convention Center in Rome.

Draghi emphasized that only 3% in poorer countries have received the vaccination, 

Biden administration has argued that the United States is committed to donating more than one billion vaccine doses worldwide.

The United States has risen. We have committed to donating over a billion doses. We have shipped more than 200 million vaccines to over 100 countries. Just this month, we announced 17 million vaccine doses for the African Union.

Saturday's opening session focused on global health and the economy, with a meeting on the sidelines between Biden, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to discuss Iran's nuclear program.

In addition, leaders are set to acknowledge the existential threat of climate change but refrain from radical new commitments to tame global warming.

After the G20 concludes on Sunday, most leaders will head to Scotland for the United Nations climate conference called COP26.

A recent UN Environment Report concluded that declarations by dozens of countries aiming to achieve "net-zero" emissions by 2050 could if fully implemented, limit global temperature rise to 2.2°C (4°F). This is closer but still above the less stringent target agreed in the Paris climate agreement to keep temperature rise well below (3.6 Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial times.

A senior administration official said Friday night that the "overall theme" for Saturday was "The United States is firmly committed to our allies and partners and direct diplomacy at the highest levels."

It is also expected to be at the fore in the first session of the G20 on Saturday: the global minimum tax.

"At this session, G20 leaders will support the creation of a historic minimum global tax to ensure giant corporations pay their fair share no matter where they are located," a senior administration official said Friday night.

"The deal works because it removes incentives to move American jobs abroad, it will help small businesses, and it will give us more resources to invest in our at-home employees," the official continued. It's a game-changer for American workers, taxpayers, and corporations. And in our opinion, this is more than just a tax deal; It is a reshaping of the rules of the global economy.

He will attend an event about the support of women-owned businesses.

But more urgent is his meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Macron, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Iran.

Johnson, Macron, and Merkel make up the E3 - the European leaders who signed the Iran nuclear deal.