Group of Seven - The African Mirror

May

22

2023

At G7, Zelenskiy says Bakhmut destruction has echoes of Hiroshima

UKRAINE'S Volodymyr Zelenskiy drew a parallel between the destruction of Bakhmut and the horror of Hiroshima, evoking the symbolism of mass destruction as he wrapped up a surprise appearance at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Japan. The Ukrainian president's arrival in Hiroshima on Saturday afternoon on a French government plane marked a dramatic turn as U.S. President Joe Biden and other leaders strengthened their call for Moscow to end its invasion, announcing new sanctions and increased military assistance. In one of its most strongly worded messages on China, the G7 communique took aim at Beijing over "economic coercion" and said…

May

21

2023

By JOHN IRISH

Ahead of financing summit, France lobbies G7 over Africa debt, climate impact

NEWS

THE Group of Seven (G7) wealthy nations need to take more responsibility in boosting crisis financing for vulnerable countries across the world and work with them to reform the post-war financing system, French officials said. France will host on June 22-23 the "Summit for a New Global Financial Pact", which will tackle the reform of multilateral development banks (MDB), the debt crisis, financing for green technologies, the creation of new international taxes and financing instruments, and special drawing rights. "It's urgent for us to act and rethink collectively the international financing architecture," a French presidential official said, adding that Paris…

Jun

14

2021

By The African Mirror

FACTBOX: China, climate and vaccines – what the G7 agreed this weekend

WORLD

THE Group of Seven rich nations promised to tackle China's growing influence, fight climate change, get more COVID-19 jabs to poor countries and keep up their economic stimulus programmes at their first summit since Joe Biden became U.S. president. Following is a summary of the main points agreed by the leaders of the United States, Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Canada at their three-day meeting at a beachside hotel in southwest England which ended yesterday. CLIMATE CHANGE - The G7 said it would meet a long-overdue funding pledge of $100 billion a year by rich countries to help poorer…

Jun

13

2021

By The African Mirror

G7 rivals China with grand infrastructure plan

WORLD

STEVE HOLLAND and GUY FAULCONBRIDGE THE Group of Seven richest democracies have sought to counter China's growing influence by offering developing nations an infrastructure plan that would rival President Xi Jinping's multi-trillion-dollar Belt and Road initiative. The G7, whose leaders are meeting in southwestern England and who discussed strategic competition with Beijing, has been searching for a coherent response to the growing assertiveness of Xi after China's surging economic and military rise over the past 40 years. U.S. President Joe Biden and other G7 leaders hope the plan, known as the Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative, will provide a…

Jun

12

2021

By The African Mirror

G7 to donate 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to poorer countries

WORLD

KATE HOLTON BRITISH Prime Minister Boris Johnson expects the Group of Seven to agree to donate 1 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to poorer countries during its summit starting on Friday, and help inoculate the world by the end of next year. Just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden vowed to supercharge the battle against the coronavirus with a donation of 500 million Pfizer shots, Johnson said Britain would give at least 100 million surplus vaccines to the poorest nations. Johnson has already called on G7 leaders to commit to vaccinate the entire world by the end of 2022 and the…

Jun

05

2021

By The African Mirror

G7 nations ‘just one millimetre’ from historic tax deal

WORLD

DAVID MILLIKEN SOME of the world's richest nations are within touching distance of a historic deal to close the net on large companies which do not pay their fair share of tax, France and Germany said yesterday after a day of talks in London. Finance ministers from the Group of Seven rich nations are meeting in person for the first time since the start of the COVID pandemic after U.S. President Joe Biden's administration gave fresh impetus to stalled global tax talks this year. Rich nations have struggled for years to agree a way to raise more tax from large…

Jul

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Germany rejects Trump’s proposal to let Russia back into G7 -foreign minister

WORLD

GERMANY has rejected a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump to invite Russian President Vladimir Putin back into the Group of Seven (G7) most advanced economies, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in a newspaper interview. Trump raised the prospect last month of expanding the G7 to again include Russia, which had been expelled in 2014 following Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. But Maas told Rheinische Post that he did not see any chance for allowing Russia back into the G7 as long as there was no meaningful progress in solving the conflict in Crimea as well as in…