<h6><strong>Eduardo González</strong></h6> <h4><strong>Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez warned this Sunday in Johannesburg, South Africa, following the United States' boycott of the G20 summit, that “at this moment of maximum international complexity,” renouncing multilateralism “would be a historic mistake.”</strong></h4> In the press conference following the close of the twentieth G20 summit, Sánchez emphasized that, despite the difficulties, the South African summit had managed to keep alive and strengthen “this space for dialogue and coordination, so important for global governance.” “At this moment of maximum international complexity, what has been achieved in South Africa is of enormous value,” Sánchez declared, referring to the Leaders' Declaration adopted at the summit, thanks to the South African presidency, at a time when “tricks are being thrown back in multilateralism.” “Abandoning multilateralism would be a historic mistake, and that is why we will continue working from Spain, both within and outside the G20, to strengthen it,” he warned. The United States did not send any representatives to the summit, a decision made by its president, Donald Trump, in protest, according to him, against the “human rights abuses” of the white Afrikaner population. Behind this argument, everything points to the American boycott being retaliation for South Africa's decision to refer Israel to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes against civilians in Gaza. It is worth noting that it was at the initiative of the United States that the first G20 summit was held in Washington in November 2008, amidst the global financial crisis. During his intervention in the working session “A fair and equitable world for all: critical minerals, decent work and artificial intelligence (AI),” Sánchez stated that the increase in global demand for resources must be accompanied by the creation of transparent and diverse supply chains that guarantee fair value creation for producing countries and an inclusive and beneficial industrial future for all regions. He also warned of the need to link the development of green industrialization with secure, sustainable, and diversified access to critical raw materials. Furthermore, he affirmed that the success of the green transition depends on its governance and the effective deployment of the technologies that drive it. In this regard, he warned of the need to address AI governance so that it helps reduce inequalities and strengthen democracy. In his analysis of the transformation of the labor market through digitalization and automation, Pedro Sánchez warned the G20 leaders of the need to build inclusive labor markets by strengthening collective bargaining and social protection, investing in skills and lifelong learning, and implementing fair and progressive taxation. <h5><strong>Ukraine</strong></h5> Regarding the meeting convened on Saturday by the President of the European Council, António Costa, to analyze the proposed peace plan for Ukraine presented by the United States, Sánchez reiterated his support for the EU's presence at the negotiating table, because, for "peace to last, it must be just and preserve the principles of the UN Charter and international law, including the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty of States."
