MATERA (ITALY) Ministers representing more than half of the world's population met in Italy Tuesday to discuss ways to improve cooperation, including in the area of climate change and vaccines.Luigi Di Maio, the Italian Foreign Minister, cited both areas as areas in which it is imperative that countries work together. The gathering was attended by foreign ministers as well as development ministers from Group of 20.COVID-19 travel concerns meant that some ministers could not attend in person. This included from Brazil, Russia, and China.Multilateralism, international cooperation and multilateralism are the best tools to face global challenges in an interconnected world," Di Maio stated. This is what we have seen with vaccines.In his opening remarks, U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken emphasized the importance of vaccine urgency.He stated that we need to get more vaccines to more areas in order to end the pandemic. This global health crisis can be stopped only by multilateral cooperation.Blinken used the opportunity to highlight U.S. contributions in COVAX, a U.N.-backed program for getting vaccines to needy countries. This includes around 500 million Pfizer doses, and 80 million additional doses.Some wealthy countries struggle to convince more of their population to get vaccinated against the disease that has claimed almost 4 million lives in confirmed deaths. However, the poorer nations of Africa and Asia are desperate for vaccine supplies. Only a small fraction of their population have access to the injections.Scientists and political leaders warn that the pandemic cannot be effectively controlled unless there are high vaccination rates in all countries.The second session of Tuesday's discussions is devoted to Africa.Di Maio believes 2021 is an important year for international cooperation on climate change. There are many occasions when we can't lose the Paris agreements.Continue the storyAdvocates for urgent action on climate change have been encouraged by the U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision to make a return to the fight against climate change and to lead it. The United States was the only country that resigned from the 2015 agreement last year under the Trump administration.G-20 ministers will also be discussing sustainable development and trade.Italy hopes that the meeting will promote a more sustainable and resilient recovery after the world emerges out of the global COVID-19 crisis.It was a reflection of the fact that for the first time since 1999 when the grouping was created, ministers from development were invited to Italy by the Italian government to participate in a joint session with ministers of foreign relations.___Frances D'Emilio reported on Rome.
