Transcript of a Press Briefing by Thomas C. Dawson, Director, External Relations Department, IMF

IMF News, April 12, 2002

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Canonical URL: Transcript of a Press Briefing by Thomas C. Dawson, Director, External Relations Department, IMF

Briefing intended to assist preparation for the April 20-21 meetings of the IMFC (International Monetary and Financial Committee) and the Development Committee.
Key dates and events:
- April 12, 2002: date of this briefing.
- April 17: luncheon address by the Managing Director at approximately 1:00 p.m. at the National Press Club; he will take questions after the address.
- April 18: World Economic Outlook will be released; Ken Rogoff will brief the press on the Outlook on Thursday morning. An embargoed access note has been circulated.
- April 20: IMFC meeting starts at the lunch hour on Saturday; anticipated conclusion in the early evening with a press conference by Managing Director Kohler and Gordon Brown.
- April 21: Development Committee meets on Sunday; a joint dinner of the IMFC and the Development Committee is anticipated.
Logistics and media contact:
- Media Relations briefed television networks; print media logistical questions should be directed to the Media Relations Division.
- The tentative schedule of events is posted on the IMF website and should be consulted regularly.
Embargo procedures:
- Briefing embargoed until about 15 minutes after conclusion; embargo to be lifted at 10 minutes after 3:00.

Broad IMFC discussion items:
- World Economic Outlook.
- Crisis prevention issues and crisis resolution mechanisms.
- Ongoing efforts to address poverty in the world's poorest countries.
- Anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.
Institutional character:
- The meetings are described as the semi-annual opportunity for membership to give a "report card" and guidance to the Fund; not expected to produce radical reform but to guide evolution of the institution.
Membership and consultation:
- Weekend meetings are part of ongoing efforts by the Fund and the Bank to consult with the Fund's 183 member countries on issues of interest and evolving operational matters.

SDRM (Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism) status:
- Crisis resolution is on the IMFC agenda; the SDRM is one of the elements of crisis resolution and is "certain to be a discussion item."
- No expectation that decisions on the SDRM will be made at these meetings; expectation is to get guidance on how to proceed with sovereign debt restructuring issues.
Rationale:
- First Deputy Managing Director Ms. Krueger has presented that there is a "hole in the system" for sovereign debt restructuring and that additional work/mechanism is needed.
Process expectations:
- The IMFC will likely provide guidance to the Fund on further steps regarding crisis resolution and sovereign debt restructuring.

Current posture:
- A mission was in Argentina and was anticipated to return shortly before the Spring Meetings to allow discussion during the meetings.
- The mission is characterized as a negotiating mission.
Potential next steps:
- If things go well at the Spring Meetings, a follow-on negotiating mission could go down "shortly after the Spring Meetings" to start working on an actual draft letter of intent.
- No commitment that such a mission will produce a signed agreement; sequence described: mission → consultations during Spring Meetings →, if favorable, another negotiating mission to draft a letter of intent.
Public communications:
- No plan announced for a Managing Director statement on Argentina during the meetings, though it is expected that journalists will ask questions and that Argentina will be discussed by Ministers.
- Reference to a statement by Anoop Singh issued on Wednesday night and expectation of a concluding mission statement from Mr. Singh before he leaves Argentina (anticipated "sometime around the middle of next week").
External commentary:
- Mike Mussa's report criticizing the IMF's handling of Argentina—particularly the August 2001 tranche—was read by IMF staff; the IMF views it as part of a range of responsible opinion and notes he was consulted in academic sessions on Argentina.

Turkey:
- The Board will meet on Monday for the review of the Turkish program.
- Assessment in briefing: "performance objectives criteria appears to have gone really rather well" with evidence of declines in interest rates and relative strength of the Turkish currency.
- Growth figures for 2001 were disappointing: referenced "last year's negative growth rate" of "minus 9.4" and noted that targets will be discussed at the next review; some end-2001 data remain preliminary.
- A release on the Board review expected "late Monday or early Tuesday."
Indonesia:
- Questions raised on whether an additional tranche or new loan negotiations were underway; no specific update available at the briefing ("We'll get back to you. I'm not sure I have any more on that.").
- Paris Club action referenced as a "lagging indicator" relative to Fund actions.
Venezuela:
- IMF concerned about human developments and loss of life.
- No Fund-supported program; recent relations mainly involve surveillance.
- Fund missions visited Caracas in December of the previous year; a small team was conducting annual reviews at the time of the briefing.
- IMF stands ready to assist the new administration as appropriate.

Protest risk:
- Given events at recent meetings, IMF is prudently aware of the possibility of protests and taking precautions.
- Current assessment: while demonstrations are planned in the Washington area around the meetings, there is no sense of the level of interest specifically regarding the Fund and Bank; expectations are for a lower level of activity compared to "the events of two years ago" and probably not even like "last year."
- Many demonstrations reportedly focus on issues other than the Fund/Bank (for example, anti-war issues).
Security posture:
- IMF will not disclose detailed security measures.
- Expectation of heightened security compared to three years ago, but not of the same nature as two years ago or possibly last year.
Meeting format:
- Meetings have been compressed (IMFC and G-7/G-8 sessions now meeting on the same day); compression could sharpen focus and shorten interventions.

Press Center:
- The IMF Press Center is a password-protected site for working journalists.
Contacts provided in transcript header:
- IMF EXTERNAL RELATIONS DEPARTMENT — Public Affairs — Media Relations.
- E-mail: publicaffairs@imf.org and media@imf.org
- Fax: 202-623-6278
- Phone: 202-623-7100
Embargo and availability:
- The briefing was embargoed until about 15 minutes after conclusion; embargo to be lifted at 10 minutes after 3:00.

Transcript of a Press Briefing by Thomas C. Dawson, Director, External Relations Department, International Monetary Fund — April 12, 2002