HIROSHIMA : Leaders of the world richest democracies agreed on Friday to stiffen sanctions against Russia and pledged financial support for Ukraine as its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, prepared to join them in the Japanese city of Hiroshima.
The Group of Seven leaders are also expected to address growing tension between their economies and China during their summit that runs until Sunday. Officials said Zelensky would attend in person over the weekend.
The leaders said in a joint statement existing measures against Russia would be broadened and any exports that could help it in its 15-month war against Ukraine would be restricted across the G7 countries.
“This includes exports of industrial machinery, tools, and other technology that Russia uses to rebuild its war machine,” they said in a joint statement, adding that efforts would continue to restrict Russian revenues from its trade in metals and diamonds.
Amid evidence that existing sanctions were being weakened by circumvention, they said the group was “engaging” with countries through which any restricted G7 goods, services or technology could transit through to Russia.
“We note and encourage commitments made by these countries to ensure our measures are not circumvented and have the intended effect,” they said, without naming any territories.
Breakdowns of German trade data show that its exports to countries bordering Russia have risen sharply, fueling concerns that about the re-exportation of goods from those neighboring states.
The group of rich democracies reaffirmed their condemnation of what they called Russia’s aggression and promised further support for Ukraine, in terms of military help and financial aid for its war-shattered economy this year and next.
The members of the G7 — the United States, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Canada and Italy — are also expected to debate strategy on the Ukraine conflict that shows no sign of easing.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in Japan’s lower house of parliament, said he chose the city for the summit to focus attention on arms control.
Hiroshima, and another Japanese city, Nagasaki, were destroyed by US nuclear attacks 78 years ago that ended World War Two.
Zelensky will attend on Sunday, two officials involved in the G7 summit said, declining to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, told state television that Zelensky’s attendance was “absolutely essential in order to defend our interests.”
Having emerged as the world’s richest nations after World War Two, the G7 democracies have become increasingly challenged by an ascendant China and unpredictable Russia.
Leaders are expected to issue a statement with a “a section specific to China,” listing issues that include “economic coercion and other behavior,” a US official said.
They are focusing on how to warn the world’s second biggest economy against what they see as its threat to global supply chains and economic security without alienating a powerful and important trade partner.
G7 leaders’ statement: Ukraine has budget support for 2023 and early 2024
https://arab.news/nrt7m
G7 leaders’ statement: Ukraine has budget support for 2023 and early 2024
- The G7 said members said they are “engaging” with other nations to avoid the flow of their goods and technology into Russia
- Talks also to address tensions with China
Reform UK London mayoral candidate criticized over burqa stop-and-search remarks
- Laila Cunningham claimed parts of British capital felt culturally different due to the visibility of Muslim communities
LONDON: The newly announced London mayoral candidate for the right-wing British party Reform UK faced criticism on Friday following comments suggesting women wearing the burqa should be subject to police stop-and-search, The Guardian newspaper reported.
Speaking on a podcast, Laila Cunningham said that in an “open society” people should not cover their faces, adding that it “has to be assumed” those who do so are doing it “for a criminal reason.”
She also argued that London should have “one civic culture” which “should be British,” claiming parts of the British capital felt culturally different due to the visibility of Muslim communities.
The remarks prompted concern from Muslim organizations, with Shaista Gohir, chief executive of the Muslim Women’s Network UK, describing the comments as “dangerous” and a “dog whistle” that could further alienate Muslim women.
She warned they risked emboldening abuse, adding: “The number of Muslim women who wear the burqa in this country is tiny, and yet this is what has been chosen as a focus.”
Gohir said her organisation had recently seen a rise in threatening and Islamophobic correspondence, arguing that Cunningham’s comments were “sending a message to Muslims that they do not belong.”
Afzal Khan, a Labour MP based in Manchester, called Cunningham’s comments a “deliberate and cynical ploy”, adding it was “about divisive ideas being pumped into the society deliberately for electoral benefits.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan also criticized attempts to stoke division, saying that the role of mayor was to bring communities together.
“Almost without argument, our city is the greatest city in the world because of our diversity,” he said, adding that freedom of religion and expression were “quintessentially British rights.”
Cunningham, a former Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor and British-born Muslim, was confirmed as Reform UK’s London mayoral candidate last week.
The issue of face coverings has previously sparked internal debate within Reform, with senior figures having distanced the party from earlier calls for a burqa ban.
