World News | G7 ‘outreach’ efforts to reach consensus on global issues including Ukraine, China, climate change

HIROSHIMA, May 20 (AP) — Leaders of the Group of Seven nations joined leaders from other countries during a summit in Japan in an effort to expand the influence of the G7 and include voices from countries in the so-called global south.

From South America to South Asia, from Ukraine to the South Pacific, guests represented a considered selection of countries, including emerging powerhouses such as Australia, Brazil, Indonesia and India as well as smaller economies such as the Comoros and Cook Islands.

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Critics accuse the G7 of being an “elite club” of countries whose importance as global leaders is being overtaken by emerging powers. By leaders of big but less wealthy democracies including India and Brazil, Japan and other G7 nations, it aims to expand their voices on major issues including the war in Ukraine, China’s growing assertiveness, debt and development issues, and climate change. consensus.

It’s an odd combination, but one with a hybrid approach.

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South Korea is an important ally of the United States and Japan, and is closely related to regional security and stability. The Comoros, an archipelago off the coast of East Africa, currently holds the presidency of the African Union – a key link to a continent that has increasingly become a focus of rivalry among Western democracies in China.

The Cook Islands is a leader in the Pacific Islands Forum – another link to a strategically important region.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said another aim was to emphasize the importance of developing countries in the Global South in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

As the only Asian G7 member, Japan has a special role to play in this regard, said Yuichi Hosoya, a professor of international politics at Keio University in Tokyo.

In a joint statement on Saturday, the G7 leaders underscored their commitment to helping countries deal with debt that has reached dangerous levels amid the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

They also reiterated their goal of mobilizing up to $600 billion for infrastructure projects in developing countries, including railways, clean energy and telecommunications.

Kishida brought together G7 leaders and guests including executives from Citigroup and other private partners to discuss how more can be done — and provide financing alternatives to investment from China in a “transparent and fair manner” .

“We’re just getting started. We have a lot of work to do to close the infrastructure gap,” President Joe Biden told the rally, referring to a rail project in West Africa that he says will improve food security and supply chain.

“Let’s commit to proving that democracy can be delivered,” Biden said. “We must deliver.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the effort could boost investment from “billions to trillions”.

“We wanted to make a better offer,” she said.

A key aim of bringing more countries to the annual G7 summit is to help seal a deal ahead of a broader annual summit of major economies of the Group of 20 in India later this year.

“Important global problems cannot be solved” without other countries, Hosoya said. “Without support from countries in the global South, the G7 will not be able to tackle the world’s most pressing problems as effectively as before.”

Indonesia hosted last year’s G20, and Brazil will host the meetings in 2024. They both have complicated relationships with China and Russia, and the G7 is seeking support for its push to end the war in Russia.

Brazil and India belong to the so-called BRICS group, which also includes China, Russia and South Africa. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva recently visited China to strengthen ties with China’s largest trading market.

Vietnam is an increasingly important trading partner for the United States, Japan and other G7 countries and one of the fastest growing economies in the region. Like Japan, it has territorial disputes with China.

“As the world moves toward fragmentation, one of the most important issues is figuring out how to steer the world in one direction and regain cooperation, and Japan is poised to play an important role as a bridge between the G7 and others.” – Known as the Global Southern countries, including the G20,” said Akio Takahara, a professor at the University of Tokyo. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)