The G7 Summit is an international summit held annually for the leaders of the G7 member states of France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Canada (in order of rotating presidency), and the European Union (EU).
The Leaders of the wealthy democracies, met in Hiroshima for the annual Summit on May 19- 21, 2023, more united than ever in their dedication to meet the global challenges of this moment and set the course for a better future.
This year, in addition to the G7 members and, the EU leaders attended from India, Brazil, Indonesia, Vietnam, Australia, South Korea and Comoros and Cook Islands – the latter two also representing the African Union and Pacific Islands Forum, respectively, as their current chairs. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the host of this year’s event, expanded the event’s guest list as he seeks to boost ties with middle-power countries and those in the Global South.
The meeting had potentially far-reaching implications that could help accelerate action to decarbonise global economies, protect nature and biodiversity, and enhance circularity.
The background of the issues discussed was that the international community is now at a critical moment in time, having experienced the COVID-19 pandemic (though it was recently declared officially over by WHO) and being faced with Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, which has shaken the very foundation of the international order.
Deliberations were from the viewpoint of;
upholding the international order based on the rule of law: Demonstrating G7’s strong determination to uphold the international order,
firmly rejecting any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force or the threat to use nuclear weapons, as Russia has done. And,
outreach to the Global South: Strengthening outreach to the Global South, by demonstrating G7’s contributions to the issues of their concern.
The G7 decided to take the following concrete steps on;
Indo-Pacific: Strengthen cooperation on the “Free and Open Indo-Pacific.”
Nuclear Disarmament and Non-proliferation – The G7 deepened discussions to send a strong message that it will advance realistic and practical efforts to take us from “the reality” of the harsh security environment to the “ideal” of a world without nuclear weapons.
Economic Resilience and Economic Security – This first appeared in the G7 Leaders’ Communiqué at the G7 in Germany 2022. The G7 will continue to work on issues such as resilient supply chains, non-market policies and practices, and economic coercion.
Climate and Energy – While the importance of ensuring energy security is reaffirmed in the face of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the goal to achieve net-zero by 2050 based on the Paris Agreement remains unchanged. The G7 showed its blueprint for various pathways towards resilient transitions, noting different national and regional circumstances, while calling on major emitters to make further efforts.
Food – Given the current food crisis, it is critical to ensure access to affordable, safe, nutritious food for all and to develop resilient food security. To this end, the G7 will identify structural vulnerabilities in the global food system and set pathways to overcome them, while addressing pressing food issues in the short term.
Health – Based on the lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic, the G7 will build and strengthen the global health architecture, especially prevention, preparedness and response for future pandemics. In addition, the G7 aims to contribute to achieving more resilient, equitable and sustainable universal health coverage as well as promoting health innovation to address various health challenges.
Development – Toward achieving all the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs, the G7 held discussions on the current development issues with the view of supporting vulnerable people left behind in crisis, taking into account the concept of the “human security” and the “human-centered approach.” Responses to opaque and unfair development finance will also be discussed.
Areas such as Gender, Human Rights, Digitalization, Education, Labor, Trade, Environment, Global Finance and Science and Technology were also highlighted in the communiqué.
In conclusion, the G7 says it will not block China’s development but calls out Beijing on it’s rights record, territorial claims while, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was the clear winner in all of this, he received a powerful demonstration of the continuing solidarity between the G7 and Ukraine and the G7’s determination to punish Russia, which was reaffirmed.
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