Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly, 28 Sep 2018

MFA Press Statement: Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan at the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly, 28 Sep 2018

Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, who is in New York for the 73rdSession of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), hosted the 11th Global Governance Group (3G)1 Ministerial Meeting. The 3G meeting was attended by several Foreign Ministers, including Bahamas, Brunei Darussalam, Barbados, Jamaica, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Monaco, and Panama. Also present were the G20 troika, comprising Germany, Argentina, and Japan, and President of the 73rd UNGA María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés. The meeting discussed global developments and reaffirmed their commitment to free trade and the multilateral rules-based system. German Minister for Foreign Affairs Heiko Maas briefed the 3G on the outcomes of the German presidency of the G20. Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Taro Kono also briefed the meeting on Japan’s priorities for its presidency of the G20 in 2019. The meeting adopted a Press Statement, attached at Annex.

                Minister Balakrishnan chaired the Informal ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (IAMM).  He also chaired the meeting of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers with UN Secretary-General António Guterres and President of the General Assembly which took stock of ASEAN-UN cooperation. (The press release of the meeting is at https://bit.ly/2DG7be1.)

                Minister Balakrishnan held separate bilateral meetings with Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Khalid Al Hamad Al Sabah, Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne, Grenadian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Labour Peter David, and German Minister for Foreign Affairs Heiko Maas.

                Minister Balakrishnan also attended a High-Level event on Counter-Terrorism convened by Kazakhstan.                                                                   

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1.  The 3G comprises the following Member States of the United Nations: Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Costa Rica, Finland, Guatemala, Jamaica, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, San Marino, Senegal, Singapore, Slovenia, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
SINGAPORE
28 SEPTEMBER 2018

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                                                                                                                         ANNEX

PRESS STATEMENT BY THE GLOBAL GOVERNANCE GROUP (3G) ON ITS ELEVENTH MINISTERIAL MEETING IN NEW YORK ON 28 SEPTEMBER 2018

1        The Global Governance Group (3G) [1] held its 11th Ministerial Meeting in New York on 28 September 2018, on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly. The 3G invited the President of the 73rd United Nations General Assembly, H.E. María Fernanda Espinosa, as well as the previous, present and incoming Presidents of the G20 (troika) – Germany, Argentina and Japan – to engage in a dialogue with the 3G during the meeting. This engagement with key stakeholders is part of the 3G’s ongoing efforts to promote a more effective, accountable and inclusive framework of global governance.

2             The 3G Ministers had a productive discussion with the G20 troika on the key priorities and deliverables of the G20 under Argentina’s G20 Presidency. The 3G Ministers welcomed Argentina’s ambitious and forward-looking G20 agenda of “Building Consensus for Fair and Sustainable Development”. The 3G Ministers commended the G20’s leadership in taking forward the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the G20’s support for developing countries in their implementation efforts. The 3G Ministers are encouraged by Argentina’s commitment to further the G20’s work on sustainable development, with a particular focus on eradicating poverty and inequality through inclusive education, economic growth and a people-centred approach. The 3G Ministers further welcomed the Buenos Aires Update, which will be important in maintaining the international momentum to advance sustainable development for the benefit for all. While stressing the importance of sustaining climate change action, the 3G Ministers welcomed the creation of the Climate Sustainability Working Group under Argentina's G20 Presidency, and reiterated their commitment to the Paris Agreement and issues related to its implementation in view of COP 24, and in this context expressed their readiness to work closely with the G20 to jointly address this urgent and global challenge.

3             The 3G Ministers discussed their concerns about the rising global trade tensions, given that the 3G countries are open economies that are heavily reliant on trade. The 3G Ministers emphasised the importance of maintaining an open, rules-based multilateral trading system as embodied by the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which has underpinned global economic growth and development. The 3G Ministers applauded efforts by Argentina’s G20 Presidency in seeking ways to uphold the rules-based multilateral trading system, including through the reinstatement of the G20 Trade and Investment Working Group and the reconvening of the G20 Trade and Investment Ministerial Meeting.

4             The 3G Ministers expressed their appreciation for Argentina’s active engagement of the group during its G20 Presidency in 2018. The 3G Ministers appreciated the briefings given by Argentina on its G20 Presidency on the sidelines of United Nations meetings in New York, in particular, the briefing by Argentina Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship H.E. Jorge Faurie at the 10th 3G Ministerial Meeting in New York on 22 September 2017.

5             The 3G Ministers looked forward to continuing their partnership with the G20 under Japan’s Presidency in 2019. The 3G Ministers urged Japan to continue the G20’s commitment to engage the 3G, as well as other regional and international organisations, in particular the United Nations. The 3G Ministers reiterated their position on the role of international organisations with universal membership in global standard setting.  This would contribute to reinforcing the complementarity between the G20, multilateral organisations and other key stakeholders.

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28 September 2018