President Obama chided those who "confused honest and open debate with irreconcilable differences," saying that the G-20 Summit had produced an "unprecedented set of comprehensive and coordinated actions" to restore the global economy.

Brushing aside rifts that hovered around the summit, Obama spoke of significant, albeit general commitments to help struggling nations and provide greater transparency to the global economy, while acknowledging that more may still need to be done.

"In life, there are no guarantees. And in economics, there are no guarantees. The people who thought they could provide guarantees, many of them worked at AIG," he said at a late afternoon press conference. But he said that the "right medicine" has been applied to the "sick patient" of the economy. "I think the patient is stabilized. There's still wounds that have to heal. And there's still emergencies that could arise. But I think you've got some pretty good care being applied."

The president spoke for 40 minutes at the conclusion of the London summit, taking questions from American and international press at his first major international forum. He said one of his main goals as president is convincing his own constituents that their fortunes are increasingly tied to those of others around the world, likely pleasing his foreign counterparts by warning against overly protectionist sentiments. He cited the example of Caterpillar, a company in his own state that had been profitable, but fell victim to an international downturn.

"If I'm effective as America's president right now, part of that effectiveness involves holding - providing Americans inside into how their self-interest is tied up with yours. And that's an ongoing project, because that's not always obvious. And there are going to be times where short-term interests are going to differ."