IMF committee forgoes communique due to apparent Russian opposition

The policy-setting body of the International Monetary Fund wrapped up discussions Thursday without issuing a communique as seen in the past, apparently due to Russia opposing language that condemned its invasion of Ukraine.

“Members have made an overwhelming call to stop the war. Concerns have been voiced on the negative impact of the war, which goes beyond neighboring countries and has a global scope,” International Monetary and Financial Committee Chair Nadia Calvino told a press conference after the meeting in Washington.

Photo shows the building of the International Monetary Fund headquarters in Washington on Aug. 11, 2021. (Kyodo)

Since the IMFC works on the basis of consensus, however, agreement cannot be reached if “one member breaks away,” said Calvino, who serves as Spain’s first vice president and minister for economy and digitalization.

The committee followed suit after the finance chiefs of the Group of 20 economies closed their meeting the previous day without releasing a joint statement.

Instead, the IMFC issued a chair’s statement, saying the global economic recovery has slowed down due to new coronavirus variants and is now facing “a major setback from the war against Ukraine and its ramifications, which will amplify existing challenges.”

In the statement, Calvino welcomed a recent decision by the IMF to launch the Resilience and Sustainability Trust to lend support to low-income members. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva expressed gratitude during the press conference for the 12 countries including Japan that stepped forward to provide a total of $40 billion for the trust.

The other 11 contributors are Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain and Switzerland.

Later in the day, the IMF and the World Bank held a roundtable discussion to drum up support for Ukraine, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivering an online speech from the East European country.

“Russian military are aimed at destroying all objects in Ukraine that can serve as an economic base for life” including railroad stations, food warehouses and oil refineries, Zelenskyy said through an interpreter, adding that immediate help is required to make up for the losses and rebuild his country.

Georgieva said in the opening remarks that the IMF estimates “over the next two to three months some $5 billion a month is needed” to allow the Ukrainian government and the economy to operate in the midst of the war, and called for concessional funding and fast-disbursing grants.