TORONTO, June 25 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama urged world leaders to follow his lead on regulatory reform on Friday before the G20 summit, while other countries touted their swifter progress in dealing with debt mountains that threaten the global recovery.
The Group of 20 meeting in Toronto on Saturday and Sunday brings together major rich and developing countries to discuss the next steps after the worst financial crisis in 80 years.
Following are quotes from leaders at the summit, which began with a separate meeting of the Group of Eight richest countries on Friday.
U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA
on the need to coordinate G20 policies to strengthen the global economy:
"We need to act in concert for a simple reason: this crisis proved and events continue to affirm that our national economies are inextricably linked."
GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL
on how best to assure sustained economic health:
"Germany and the European Union have a firm position: we have had large economic-programs … we have now returned to robust growth-rates and so it is time to reduce deficits."
"Intelligent saving and sustainable growth need not to be a contradiction."
OECD SECRETARY GENERAL ANGEL GURRIA
on the tensions between economic recovery and budget austerity:
"It’s not a dilemma. It’s a fool’s dilemma. You have to do both."
"If there’s a fire we all know what to do. We get a hose, we get a pail of water, spit on it, throw Coca Cola on it or whatever to put it out. Right now the fire’s over. We saved the house, mostly, but you’ve got to paint it, plaster it, whatever."
EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT JOSE MANUEL BARROSO
on the need for rich countries to deliver unmet aid pledges to the world’s poor:
"We have to say today we have not met all the commitments … if we want to be successful we’ll have to speed up our work."
BRITISH PRIME MINISTER DAVID CAMERON
on why some countries need to get a handle on their debt and deficit problems quickly:
"The risk to us, and the Americans and others recognize this, is not taking action. The G8 will actually conclude that those countries with the worst problems need to accelerate their action, which is what we have done."
on whether he plans to watch Sunday’s England-Germany World Cup game with Germany’s Merkel: "There is an idea we might try and watch it together. I will try not to wrestle her to the ground during penalties, but we will have to see."
