Ban arrives in Turkey ahead of G20 Summit, meets with Turkish President

Meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ahead of the G20 Summit in Antalya, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the annual event was “happening in somber times that required unity of action.”

A readout issued by the UN spokesperson noted that the two leaders condemned in the strongest terms the attacks in Paris and stressed the need for the international community to address terrorism "in a determined and unified way."

“The Secretary-General expressed appreciation for the Turkish presidency of the G20,” the readout underlined, adding that Mr. Ban reiterated that he will present in a few months his comprehensive Plan of Action Against Violent Extremism.

Mr. Ban and President Erdoğan exchanged views on the way forward to resolve the situation in Syria. The UN chief also warmly thanked Turkey for hosting such a large number of refugees from that country.

In addition, the two leaders discussed the situation in Palestine, Libya and Cyprus, as well as issues related to climate change. The Secretary-General highlighted the importance to mobilize the G20 countries in order to achieve a meaningful and ambitious climate agreement at the conference (COP21) in Paris at the end of the month.