Jakarta –
The leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) began their three-day talks on Sunday (26/06) in the Bavarian Alps, Germany, where the topic of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated the agenda.
One of the first announcements was a $600 billion infrastructure initiative to help developing countries tackle climate change. The initiative is seen as a Western response to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
“I want to be clear, this is not a favor or charity,” Biden said. “This is an investment that will benefit everyone, including Americans and the people of all nations. It will improve the economy of all of us.”
Beijing is accused of trapping low-income countries into unaffordable debt to become part of the backing of the trillion-dollar BRI fund, which is seen as expanding China’s trading power with Africa, Asia and Europe.
The new G7 fund will focus on the climate initiative, among other projects, including an investment in a $2 billion solar farm in Angola, $320 million to build a hospital in Ivory Coast, and $40 million to promote energy trade. regionally in Southeast Asia.
EU Commission Chair Ursula von der Leyen said the G7 offered “sustainable and quality infrastructure” and would “listen closely to host countries.”
Biden and Scholz hold bilateral talks
Speaking after the first working day session, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his optimism in facing major global challenges exacerbated by the Ukraine conflict.
“Our work in promoting infrastructure globally is also influenced by the current geopolitical situation,” he said. “We have therefore discussed how our investments globally in climate-neutral and low-carbon energy, including gas, can help us as a temporary response to Russia’s use of energy as a weapon.”
Scholz and Biden held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, where the US President praised the German Chancellor for “increasing” defense spending by 100 billion euros.
Biden added that Berlin was one of Washington’s most important allies after the two appeared briefly in front of the press. Biden also said the G7 countries and the NATO alliance must “stick together” in the face of a Russian invasion.
Russia’s gold export ban
Shortly before the summit began, London announced in a statement that the UK, along with the US, Japan and Canada, would ban gold imports from Russia to tighten the economic impact of sanctions on Russia.
Such joint action “would directly hit the Russian oligarchs and strike at the heart of Putin’s war machine,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement. Washington said the decision would be formally announced as a G7 move, on Tuesday (28/06).
The UK says that Russia’s gold exports are worth about $15.5 billion in 2021 and this figure has increased since sanctions were imposed as a way to get around this.
What other topics are on the agenda?
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden are also expected to discuss proposals to tackle sharp increases in worldwide food and oil prices, as well as inflation, along with the leaders of Canada, France, Italy, Japan and the UK. G7 leaders will also tackle climate change, with Germany urging the formation of a “climate club” to set practical emission reduction targets for participating countries.
European Union Council President Charles Michel said during a press conference that the European Union welcomed the “climate club” proposal, stressing the need to diversify energy sources and accelerate renewable energy infrastructure.
Michel also highlighted the importance of tackling the food security crisis, among other things by bringing Ukrainian food products to global markets and by supporting EU partners hardest hit by the food shortage crisis.
Climate activists hold demonstrations
Around 200 protesters departed during the day from the small town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, heading near the Elmau castle, where the G7 summit is being held.
Organizers told news agency dpa that they expected the number of protesters to rise to around 2,000. A large number of police were also present to escort the demonstration.
A larger protest took place near the big city of Munich on Saturday (25/06), but the number was far fewer than the estimated 20,000 participants. German police on Sunday (26/06) said that four protesters in Munich had been arrested on charges of causing bodily injury.
kp/ha (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)
Watch the video ‘The Moment G7 Leaders Ridicule Putin Bare-chested Riding a Horse’:
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