Leaders of the Group of Seven pose during a group photo at the G7 summit at Elmau Castle in Kruen, near Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Sunday, June 26, 2022. The major economic powers of the Group of Seven se gather in Germany for their annual gathering Sunday through Tuesday. From left to right, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, US President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, French President Emmanuel Macron and European Council President Charles Michel. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, Pool)
PA
ELMAU, Germany
The latest news on the G-7 Summit, the annual meeting of the major democratic economies, being held this year in the Bavarian Alps in Germany:
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said the West has no intention of “torpedoing” the Group of 20 – the group of major economies that also includes Russia.
This year’s G-20 summit is due to take place in Indonesia in November. One wonders if Western leaders will sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Scholz, which is hosting the Group of Seven small industrial powers summit this week, also hosts the leaders of five major emerging democratic economies — India, Indonesia, Senegal, South Africa and Argentina — on Monday.
So far, not all of them agree with the G-7 countries on the war in Ukraine or the sanctions. Scholz told German ZDF television that “it is all the more important that we discuss (the issue) with each other”.
Scholz told German ZDF television: “We must not fall into Putin’s trap of saying that the world is divided between the global West – the G-7 and its northern friends – and everything else. It’s not true. There are democracies all over the world and they have very similar perspectives.
Scholz did not explicitly commit to appearing at the G-20 summit whether or not Putin attends, but stressed the importance of the group.
He said, “There’s a common belief…that we don’t want to torpedo the G-20.”
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
– G-7 leaders commit to Ukraine, US sends anti-aircraft system
– Tale of 2 Summits: “America is Back” on America’s Rollback
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OTHER DEVELOPMENTS:
President Joe Biden is set to announce that the United States is providing an advanced surface-to-air missile system to Ukraine, along with additional artillery support, according to a person familiar with the matter, as part of of the latest assistance to help the country defend itself. against Russia’s four-month invasion.
The United States is buying NASAMS, an anti-aircraft system developed by Norway, to provide medium and long range defense, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity. NASAMS is the same system used by the United States to protect sensitive airspace around the White House and the US Capitol in Washington.
The additional aid includes more ammunition for Ukrainian artillery, as well as counter-battery radars, to support its efforts against the Russian assault in Donbass, the person said.
The announcement comes as Biden huddles with allies this week in support of Ukraine in meetings at the Group of Seven advanced economies summit in Germany and the annual NATO leaders’ meeting in Madrid.
— By Zeke Miller in Elmau, Germany
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A year ago, Joe Biden attended his first Group of Seven summit as president and confidently told America’s closest allies that “America is back.”
Now there are fears that America is backing down. As Biden meets with the heads of the G-7’s major democratic economies in the Bavarian Alps this week, he brings with him the baggage of domestic turmoil.
The United States is grappling with political unrest, shocking mass shootings and the US Supreme Court’s decision to end constitutional abortion protections.
Biden says other world leaders at the summit did not ask him about the abortion decision. But domestic turmoil undoubtedly worries its European allies.
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Leaders of the Group of Seven economic powers set to make long-term pledges to support Ukraine as they meet in the German Alps and hold video-link talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The G-7 leaders will begin Monday’s session of their three-day summit with a focus on Ukraine. Later, they will be joined by leaders from five democratic emerging economies – India, Indonesia, South Africa, Senegal and Argentina – for a discussion on climate change, energy and other questions.
The war in Ukraine was already at the forefront of the G-7 leaders’ minds when they opened their summit at the secluded luxury Schloss Elmau hotel on Sunday – just as Russian missiles hit the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, to the first time in weeks.
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Follow AP’s coverage of the G-7 summit: https://apnews.com/hub/g-7-summit
