Iranian representatives walk out of Istanbul auditorium as Israeli finance minister begins addressing International Monetary Fund. 'This unique type of worldwide recession was probably unpredictable only two years ago,' Steinitz says
The global financial crisis was unpredictable, Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz said Tuesday afternoon during the annual International Monetary Fund conference in Istanbul.
The minister, who addressed the conference, described the implications of the crisis on Israel's
economy and offered Israeli aid in funding the plan to increase the IMF's resources in order to support developing countries.
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Iran's representatives at the conference walked out of the auditorium as Steinitz began speaking.
"About a year ago, the global financial crisis shocked governments across the world," the Israeli minister told the conference. "Today we are standing here with cautious optimism. We all agree that the Monetary Fund and the World Bank have acted swiftly and appropriately in light of the worldwide economic and financial crisis.
"It should be noted that the Monetary Fund, thanks to its strong analytical abilities, must play a key role in forming new global standards for financial control."
"We believe that the real nature of the economic crisis we have experienced is far from being interpreted; therefore, at this stage, it is premature to draw firm conclusions. Although we can point to the casual relations within the chain of unusual events that have led us into the crisis… we must not ignore the fact that this casual chain seems inevitable on in retrospect.
"Intellectual integrity forces us to admit the fact that such a unique type of worldwide recession was probably unpredictable only two years ago, and the best evidence for this is that no one predicted it in real life. There were some experts who did manage to predict the development of several elements in the imminent crisis, but none of them estimated that these elements would later lead to the global earthquake the world experienced."
Steinitz concluded by stating that Israel would support the G-20's recent initiative to increase the IMF's available resources, with the goal of supporting emerging markets and developing countries.
"Israel is interested in contributing to this important mission, and we have therefore decided to take part in two important funding programs declared recently," he said. "Israel is happy about this opportunity to take part in the global effort to strengthen the global economic and financial system. Israel recognizes the importance of the policy of encouraging growth in developing countries."
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