International leaders representing the Group of 20 leading industrial nations and the European Union are gathering at Pittsburgh in the north eastern U.S. for the next two days to focus on the task of ensuring that the world emerges from the economic crisis as soon as sustainably possible.

Pittsburgh, suggested by President Barack Obama as the location for the meeting back in May, was picked by the White House for its emergence as a city which overcame a dependence on the steel industry to diversify. It now has an unemployment rate 2 percentage points lower than the U.S. average.

After visiting the United Nations for a General Assembly earlier this week, leaders will make the short trip down to Pennsylvania to a city heavily fortified against the possibility of unruly protesters. Some previous gatherings have been marred by violent groups mixing with more peaceful activists.

At a Group of 20 meeting earlier this month involving top finance officials, ministers said they would continue to implement commitments made at the previous two meetings and agreed to further steps to strengthen the financial system.

The group said they would continue to provide “financial support measures and expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, consistent with price stability and long-term fiscal sustainability, until recovery is secured.”

Among other moves, the group said they would “work to address excessive commodity price volatility by improving the functioning and transparency of physical and financial markets and promoting a closer dialogue between producer and consumer countries.”

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