May 5, 2021 Share
Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations are meeting in London this week, with climate change, Russia and China among the challenges topping the agenda. It is the first face-to-face G-7 meeting in two years, after the coronavirus pandemic forced the Pittsburgh 2020 foreign ministers’ meeting to be held via video link.
Russia was ejected from what was then the G-8 in 2014, after its forceful annexation of Crimea.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday condemned Moscow’s recent deployment of troops on Ukraine’s border.
“We are focused very much on Russia’s actions and what course it chooses to take,” Blinken told reporters in London. “President Biden has been very clear for a long time, including before he was president, that if Russia chooses to act recklessly or aggressively, we’ll respond. But we are not looking to escalate. We would prefer to have a more stable, more predictable
Japan's foreign minister has voiced concern over China's attempts to change the status quo in the East China and South China seas, and the human rights situation in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
G7 talks vaccines after pleas to help poor countries By SHAUN TANDON, Agence France-Presse
Published May 5, 2021 11:37am
Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers meeting 2021 in London. Agence France-Presse photo The Group of Seven wealthy democracies will discuss coronavirus vaccines Wednesday as they face growing pressure to share stockpiles and know-how with poor nations trailing far behind on fighting the pandemic. Foreign ministers of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States are wrapping up three days of talks in central London that will set the agenda for a G7 leaders summit next month in Cornwall, southern England. After a day focused on showing a common front of democracies towards China, the final sessions will also bring in development chiefs and address global challenges including the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.