United States is the worst-hit country by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has registered 11.9 million cases and over 255,000 deaths so far. While the country's leader and president Donald Trump has downplayed the risks of the pandemic and boasted of an incredible response towards the virus outbreak, his actions suggest otherwise. The recent G20 summit is proof of US President's seriousness to combat the pandemic, if CNN's report is to be believed.
The world leaders had met on Saturday to discuss the preparedness and response to the deadly contagion outbreak and measures to alleviate the pandemic in the coming months. Participating countries at a side-meeting included Germany, France, South Korea, Argentina and Saudi Arabia, but the leader of the worst-hit country by the pandemic appeared to be missing.
When golf takes priority
The event on the sidelines of G20 summit was to "foster international cooperation and to find solutions that protect people's lives and livelihoods," Saudi said, according to CNN. But as the COVID preparedness and response meeting commenced, White House pool reporters said that Trump had arrived at one of his golf courses in Virginia.
The actual reason behind Trump's absence from the event remains unknown as White House did not issue a statement on the matter, but the US President was not on the list of event speakers. Even to the participation for the G20 Summit, the White House had confirmed Trump's partaking at the last minute on late Friday afternoon, less than a day before the summit was scheduled to begin, Washington Post reported.
G20 summit is an important global event, where world leaders meet annually to discuss financial and socioeconomic issues. Due to the pandemic, this year's summit was held online. The countries participating in the G20 summit make up around 80 percent of the world's economic output, two-thirds of the global population and three-quarters of international trade, according to the official website.
