China on Saturday expressed “strong dissatisfaction” with a communiqué issued by G7 leaders that took aim at Beijing on issues including the South China Sea, human rights and alleged interference in their democracies, as well as “economic coercion”.
Leaders from the seven wealthy nations attending the summit since Friday in the Japanese city of Hiroshima issued a statement calling on China “not to conduct interference activities” and expressed concerns about alleged human rights abuses in China, particularly in the far-western regions of Tibet and Xinjiang.
They also said G7 countries were “gravely concerned” about territorial disputes in the South China Sea, indirectly accusing China of “coercion”.
Beijing was also urged by the G7 to use its influence to put pressure on Russia to end its invasion of Ukraine.
On economical and trade issues, G7 leaders vowed that attempts to “weaponise” trade and supply chains would “fail and face consequences,” in a thinly veiled warning to China over its economic practices.
Pushing back against Beijing’s willingness to wield trade measures in diplomatic disputes has been a key theme of the bloc’s meeting in Hiroshima though, in the end, its statement on economic security did not directly reference China.
Still, the target was clear, with the group warning of a “disturbing rise in incidents of economic coercion” that attempt to “undermine the foreign and domestic policies and positions of G7 members” and partners.
“The G7 trumpets is hindering world peace”
“Attempts to weaponise economic dependencies by forcing G7 members and our partners including small economies to comply and conform will fail and face consequences,” it added.
The bloc is particularly concerned about its vulnerability in key sectors including critical minerals, semiconductors and batteries, all of which are vital to modern economies.
It pledged to strengthen supply chains and address disruptions, and ensure that technologies with national security applications are “appropriately controlled” — also likely to be seen as a reference to keeping certain goods out of Beijing’s hands.
Washington has led an aggressive push in recent months to restrict China’s access to advanced chip-manufacturing tools, citing national security concerns while pressing Japan and the Netherlands to follow suit.
The common strategy will emphasise the need to protect Western powers and their allies while avoiding outright confrontation with China.
But China’s foreign ministry hit back on Saturday evening, saying the G7’s “approach has no international credibility whatsoever”.
“The G7 insisted on manipulating China-related issues, smearing and attacking China,” a spokesman for the foreign ministry said in a statement.
“China expresses its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition and has lodged an official protest with Japan, the host country of the summit, as well as other relevant parties.”
The G7 statement stressed “the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”, but Beijing responded by criticising the bloc for not showing clear opposition to Taiwan independence.
“The G7 trumpets that it wants to move towards a peaceful, stable and prosperous world. But in fact it is hindering world peace, undermining regional stability and inhibiting the development of other countries,” the spokesman said.
The Quad group meeting
Moreover, the leaders of the Quad group (Australia, India, Japan and the United States) delivered a thinly veiled swipe at Beijing’s behaviour Saturday at a summit in Hiroshima.
US President Joe Biden and his three partners in the group did not mention China by name but the communist superpower was clearly the target of language in a joint statement calling for “peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific maritime domain”.
“We strongly oppose destabilizing or unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion,” the statement said, using diplomatic language that appeared to refer to China’s economic tactics to gain leverage over poorer countries and also its military expansion in the Pacific.
“We express serious concern at the militarization of disputed features, the dangerous use of coastguard and maritime militia vessels, and efforts to disrupt other countries’ offshore resource exploitation activities,” the statement added, clearly referring to Chinese construction of bases on former offshore reefs and harassment of non-Chinese vessels in disputed waters.
Zelensky’s bold diplomatic gambit
Besides, President Volodymyr Zelensky huddled with G7 leaders on a landmark visit to Hiroshima Saturday. Zelensky’s surprise summit appearance offered a chance to confer not only with allies but unaligned powers including India and Brazil. His bold diplomatic gambit appeared to have paid off.
The trip is an opportunity to press his plan for a peace process contingent on Russian withdrawals, and woo powers like India and Brazil which have not condemned Moscow’s war.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Zelensky for the first time since the war began and offered some measure of support.
“I understand your pain and the pain of Ukrainian citizens very well,” Modi said. “I can assure you that to resolve this India and, me personally, will do whatever we can do,” Modi said.
A diplomatic source said Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva also planned to speak to Zelensky, despite previously accusing the West of “encouraging the war”.
Roger Barake, with AFP
