G20 leaders agree for 'urgent' WTO reforms at Nagoya meeting

Foreign ministers from the Group of 20 major economies on Saturday agreed that there is "urgent" need to reform the World Trade Organisation amid an escalating tit-for-tat tariff trade war between the United States and China.

At the gathering, the foreign ministers discussed reforms to the WTO, as Japan, the United States and other countries are pushing for the Geneva-based organisation to improve its dispute settlement system -- a point touched on in a declaration issued by G20 leaders in Osaka this June, The Japan Times reported.

Against the backdrop of the trade row between the United States and China, Motegi said during today's gathering, "We should deepen discussions to make concrete efforts to boost free and fair trade."

In late June, the G20 leaders agreed to promote free trade and committed to using "all policy tools" to support the global economy, which faces downside risks.The G20 members gathering of foreign ministers this year was attended by nine other countries, including Spain, the Netherlands and Thailand.

The G20 foreign ministers meeting in Nagoya was the last of a series of ministerial gatherings hosted by Japan this year, with the group's rotating presidency passing to Saudi Arabia in 2020.The G20 consists of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

The summit was also attended by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar who also held several bilateral and multilateral meetings on its margins, including meeting with the Foreign Ministers of Republic of Korea, Netherlands and Singapore.

Jaishankar, earlier in the day, also met his Spanish counterpart Josep Borrell Fontelles to strengthen India's ties with the European Union.