U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged developed countries to deal swiftly with the current global economic crisis, warning that it could lead to political crisis and social unrest.

Ban made the remark at a meeting with diplomats in Moscow, Russia on Saturday, citing the impact of the financial crisis on Russia and Eastern Europe.

Latvia's government collapsed last month under strong resistance from the public and countries including Greece, Bulgaria and Lithuania have seen waves of riots.

Ban will meet with leaders of developed nations at the G20 summit in London slated for April second to discuss ways to deal with the financial crisis.