G20 leaders talk tough ahead of summit

Leaders of the world''s top economic powers promised tough action to police financial markets and prevent a new economic crash Thursday as they gathered for the G20 summit. The US city of Pittsburgh mounted a massive security operation as it prepared to welcome incoming heads of state for a meeting set to be dominated by banker bonuses, stimulus "exit strategies" and rebalancing world growth.
Thousands of police deployed behind steel barriers to protect the summit venue, as streets were closed and shop windows boarded over in case of violent protests. Hardline demonstrators have vowed to march on the summit venue at the David Lawrence Convention Center to vent their anger at the two-day meeting of the so-called Group of 20 leading economies opening Thursday evening.
"In Pittsburgh, we will work with the world''s largest economies to chart a course for growth that is balanced and sustained," US President Barack Obama told the United Nations on the eve of hosting his first major summit. "And that means... strengthening regulation for all financial centers, so that we put an end to the greed, excess and abuse that led us into disaster, and prevent a crisis like this from ever happening again."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel echoed his call for thorough regulation. "Pittsburgh will be a decisive milestone in determining whether the issue of financial market regulation remains a central issue. For us this is the most important issue at this meeting," she told reporters.
But Merkel also said she would resist expected moves by others, including the United States, to shift the focus of the meeting to imbalances in the global economy, including Germany''s trade surplus. "I have the impression that we are on the right path but at any time the impetus might weaken. Therefore we will really press for this not to happen," she told a press conference before leaving Berlin.
The summit of the world''s 19 biggest developed and emerging economies plus the European Union comes just over a year after a US credit collapse triggered a global economic slowdown. It also comes six months after the same G20 chiefs met in London to co-ordinate their response to the crisis, and their performance in Pittsburgh will be judged in part on whether they have lived up to their earlier promises.