G7 summit: World leaders make pledges on issues including pandemic and environment
LONDON: The G7 summit in Cornwall, England, concluded with a pledge to address challenges including pandemic and the environment. Leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, France, Germany and Italy attended the meeting.
Unlike the previous two summits, the Cornwall summit saw a strong US participation. In 2018, US President Donald Trump left from the G7 conference in Canada without standing for a joint communique. Trump took a similar stance at a meeting in France a year later. But Joe Biden, who attended the summit in Cornwall, declared “the United States is back and democracies of the world are standing together to tackle the toughest challenges and the issues that matter most to our future”.
Although Biden’s diplomatic approach differs from Trump’s, the summit underlined that Washington’s concerns about China continue under the new president.
The summit called on China to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, particularly in Xinjiang province. The summit also highlighted the situation in Hong Kong. The summit communique also said that the G7 will promote values.
Biden said democracies must work together to combat climate change and to act as a counterweight to authoritarian states like China and Russia.
Brexit
Although not on the summit agenda, informal talks on Brexit took place between the European Union and the UK.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Angela Merkel have discussed with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson the challenges with Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trading arrangements. Exports of chilled meat have been banned across the Irish Sea from Britain since July 1, which was the main topic of discussion. Emmanuel Macron called for respect for the terms of the Brexit agreement.
COVID-19 vaccine
G7 leaders have pledged one billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines, either directly or through financial donations, over the next year. According to the World Health Organization, 11 billion vaccine doses are required to stop the spread of the disease.
Together for the Green World
The White House has said G7 leaders will launch the Build Back Better World (B3W) project to finance infrastructure, including green technologies, and support growth in developing countries. The initiative is seen as a rival to Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, which has spread Chinese influence around the world.
No compromise on the environment
The G7 summit declared its support for a green revolution that would create jobs and reduce carbon emissions. The meeting also suggested that global warming should be limited to 1.5 degrees. Measures will be taken to reduce the use of coal power to reduce carbon emissions. The G7 nations have also set a goal of conserving or protecting 30% of their land and marine areas by 2030.
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