Delegates Walk Out as Russian Finance Minister Addresses IMF Steering Committee; IMFC Chair Urges More Support for Countries Hit by War Spillovers
Many delegates to the International Monetary Fund's steering committee, the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), walked out of a meeting on Saturday, October 17, when Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov addressed the group, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
"Many delegations walked out, including members of the European Union," one of the sources told Reuters.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has roiled the IMFC, preventing it from reaching consensus statements in the years since. Deep divisions flared again this year amid fresh tensions between the United States and Ukraine, Reuters reported.
In a chair's statement issued after the IMFC met in Bangkok the same day, IMF member countries called for increasing support to countries that are facing short-term financing challenges caused by negative spillovers from wars and high energy prices. The committee said that economic risks remain tilted to the downside. "Escalating conflicts and trade tensions could further disrupt critical trade routes, exacerbate commodity price pressures, including in refined energy products, and worsen energy and food security," said the statement issued by Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, the IMFC chair.
The meeting took place during the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok. GSM has previously reported U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent's statement at the annual meetings calling on the two institutions to return to their core missions, and Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's remarks in Bangkok that he would not pre-commit to a rate path.
(Source: Reuters)
Source: Reuters
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿的国际货币基金组织总部大楼（资料照片）。国际货币基金组织供图，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons / Photo: IMF headquarters in Washington, DC (file photo). By the International Monetary Fund, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
