The annual summit of the Group of Seven largest economies in the world officially opened on May 19 in Hiroshima, Japan, and will last until May 21.
It is no coincidence that Hiroshima was chosen as the venue for this conference. The city known to the world as the first place to be attacked with a nuclear weapon is also the hometown of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
The 1945 bombing helped end World War II, but devastated Hiroshima and the Japanese city of Nagasaki, killing thousands of civilians and leaving survivors with lasting memories.
Kishida’s choice of venue reflects the Japanese leader’s commitment to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, which is expected to top the agenda of the G7 summit, alongside hot-button issues such as support for Ukraine and tougher sanctions against Russia, as well as the rivalry between the two superpowers, the US and China.
Implications from Hiroshima
Back in 2016, when Mr Kishida, then Japan’s foreign minister, took his G7 counterparts to the A-Bomb Dome memorial in Hiroshima, he believed “this would be the first step towards the abolition of nuclear weapons”.
Seven years later, when Mr. Kishida returned to his hometown to host the G7 Summit as Japanese Prime Minister, he and other top leaders once again visited the A-Bomb Dome memorial. However, his dream of a world without nuclear weapons now seems more distant than ever.
G7 leaders visit the Atomic Bomb Dome memorial in Hiroshima, May 19, 2023, before the start of the annual summit. Photo: Republic World
Since the Russia-Ukraine military conflict broke out early last year, threats of using nuclear weapons have become more frequent, while the nuclear arsenals of some countries have also grown, making Washington's allies, including Japan, more in need of the US nuclear umbrella.
“I do feel that the path to a world without nuclear weapons has become even more difficult than before,” Kishida admitted in an interview last month. But he added that it was Japan’s responsibility – as the only country to have suffered atomic bombings – to “continue to hold high the banner of our ideals” to achieve the goal of eliminating nuclear weapons.
Hiroshima, where on August 6, 1945, at least 80,000 people were killed when the United States became the first and so far only country to launch a nuclear attack.
As a native of Hiroshima, Mr. Kishida has made disarmament central to his political career, and the topic is expected to feature prominently when the leaders of the world’s most advanced economies gather in the southwestern Japanese city of Hiroshima.
G7 leaders participate in a tree planting ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, May 19, 2023, before the start of the annual summit. Photo: Twitter
The G7 countries – including the US, France and Britain which have nuclear weapons – were criticised after a foreign ministers’ meeting last month failed to come up with new steps to eliminate nuclear weapons. Whether this summit can produce more concrete ideas will be closely watched, including by those in the host city of Hiroshima.
“We hope that the G7 will be able to chart a solid course toward the ultimate goal of a world without nuclear weapons and without relying on deterrence,” said Kazumi Matsui, Mayor of Hiroshima.
US-China competition
But this year's summit comes as G7 members are divided on a range of other key issues, including US-China competition, economic coercion, climate strategy, dealing with the Global South, and the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI).
The G7 – comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States – was created to discuss policies to deal with the economic crisis of the 1970s. Today, its leaders gather at a critical moment, as global growth slows amid rising inflation.
Last week, G7 finance and central bank leaders wrapped up a three-day meeting in Niigata, pledging to combat rising costs and ensure expectations about future price movements remain “well-balanced”.
“When it comes to what’s happening in world politics… we’re increasingly worried about the US-China relationship leading to conflict,” Mireya Solis, director of the Brookings Institution’s Center for East Asia Policy Studies, said in a recent podcast.
“These are nuclear superpowers – and so I think Hiroshima encapsulates a very poignant reminder of the need to address these issues and avoid a similar outcome,” said Ms. Solis.
The annual summit of the Group of Seven (G7) largest economies in the world officially opened on May 19, 2023 in Hiroshima, Japan, discussing many hot issues. Photo: Twitter
US-China geopolitical tensions have also raised concerns about global supply chains, with US President Joe Biden expected to announce an executive order aimed at curbing US companies’ investment in China.
Also at the G7 meeting of financial and central bank leaders last week, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told reporters that the US was considering measures to counter “economic coercion” allegedly used by China against other countries.
Mr Biden confirmed that he would meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the near future, but did not give a specific timeline for when the meeting would take place.
“Sooner or later, we will meet,” Mr. Biden said when asked about plans to meet Mr. Xi.
A White House official said an in-person meeting between the two leaders would be ideal, and US officials are actively assessing whether the meeting could take place before the end of the year.
Russia-Ukraine conflict
Certainly the topic of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and how to increase pressure on the Russian economy will occupy a large part of the agenda of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will travel to Japan for a summit on May 21, according to the Financial Times and people familiar with the matter. The leader of the Eastern European nation is aiming to shore up support from a group of wealthy democracies for Ukraine in its fight against Russia.
Ahead of the G7 Summit, the British government announced a new round of sanctions on May 18, including a ban on Russian diamonds, which is expected to affect Moscow's $4 billion export sector in 2021. In addition, the government of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also announced a ban on imports of copper, aluminum and nickel from Russia.
In addition to the above trade restrictions, the UK is planning to target an additional 86 members of Russia's military-industrial complex, as well as individuals involved in key Russian sectors including energy, metals and shipping.
Ahead of the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan, on May 19, 2023, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Twitter account posted a photo expressing support for Ukraine. Photo: Twitter
The UK is continuing to work with G7 allies to target all forms of sanctions evasion, including those deliberately supporting the Kremlin in its efforts to mitigate the impact of current sanctions.
Like London, Washington is also preparing a new package of sanctions targeting Russia, multiple media outlets quoted a senior US government official as saying.
The measures are intended to “restrict Russia’s access to goods critical to its battlefield capabilities,” the US official said on May 19 ahead of the G7 summit in Japan.
The US plans to further expand export controls “to make it harder for Russia to maintain its war machine,” blocking about 70 entities from Russia and third countries from accessing US exports, the official said, adding that 300 sanctions against individuals, organizations, vessels and aircraft will also be announced.
Climate and AI
For developing countries, including many former colonies of Western powers with different views and relationships with Russia and China, the G7 will provide more support on health, food security and infrastructure to help forge closer ties.
Developed countries promised in 2009 to transfer $100 billion annually between 2020 and 2025 to vulnerable countries facing increasingly severe climate-related impacts and disasters – but that target has never been met.
According to British NGO Oxfam, rich G7 countries owe poor countries about $13 trillion in unpaid development aid as well as support in the fight against climate change.
The logo of the G7 Summit is pictured in Hiroshima, May 16, 2023. Photo: Getty Images
There was also one issue that wasn’t initially on the agenda: the breakneck growth of the artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot ChatGPT, which meant that G7 leaders could no longer ignore the issues it raised.
In April, Japanese Prime Minister Kishida met with the CEO of OpenAI, the company that developed the ChatGPT chatbot. Meanwhile, EU lawmakers have also urged G7 leaders to find ways to control the development of this AI product.
G7 digital ministers agreed in April that they should adopt “risk-based” regulation of AI .
Minh Duc (According to Financial Times, Al Jazeera, CNBC)
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