Japan's Kishida, South Korea's Yoon among leaders set to discuss swirling crises
The
G-7 summit in Germany and NATO summit in Madrid will be held amid swirling
global crises, led by the war in Ukraine. (Source photos by AP)
RHYANNON BARTLETT-IMADEGAWA and MAILYS PENE-LASSUS,
Nikkei staff
writers
LONDON/PARIS -- World leaders are set to meet for a double bill
of summits starting this weekend, as they try to address multiple unfolding
crises, led by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
While the
war is sure to be the focus, the growing geopolitical significance of the
Indo-Pacific region is also likely to be a theme of the discussions.
The Group
of Seven wealthy democracies will hold their summit in Germany from Sunday to
Tuesday, with India and Indonesia invited to participate as partner countries.
This will be immediately followed by a NATO summit in Spain involving 30 member
states, with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean President
Yoon Suk-yeol attending as guests -- firsts for both Asian countries.
Since
February, ministers from the G-7 -- the U.S., U.K., Canada, Germany, France,
Italy and Japan, along with the European Union -- have been in continuous
discussions on sanctions against Russia and support for Ukraine as an energy
crisis brought on by the sanctions intensifies.
At their
meeting in Schloss Elmau, a secluded Bavarian resort, the leaders will confront
"a problem of greater magnitude than we've seen for decades," said
Tim Benton, research director for emerging risks at the U.K. think tank Chatham
House, pointing to the simultaneous challenges of the war, food insecurity,
soaring inflation and the danger of a global recession.
Concrete
action and money will be needed to help developing countries hit by rising food
prices. Easing the blockade of Ukrainian grain exports will likely be "top
of mind," Benton said, while the summit should provide a window on the
"G-7 view about how to tackle the future as it unrolls over the next
months."
The
German hosts are also keen to step up climate action. They want to establish a
"climate club" of states eager to achieve the Paris climate goals.
But the energy crisis threatens to derail decarbonization efforts; how far the
G-7 will commit to staying the course on green energy will be closely watched.
On the
sidelines, a "primary diplomatic objective" of the group will be to
bring India closer to the Western side on the Ukraine war, according to Tristen
Naylor, an assistant professor and lecturer in history and politics at the
University of Cambridge. While New Delhi has repeatedly called for an end to
hostilities, its long-standing defense ties with Russia have made it reluctant
to condemn Moscow. It has also continued to purchase Russian oil.
India and
Indonesia will join Senegal, South Africa and Argentina as invited partners.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the discussions with the attendees will
"send out a powerful signal ... a common message from strong democracies
that are aware of their global responsibilities."
In a
press briefing on Thursday, John Kirby, the U.S. National Security Council
coordinator for strategic communications, said that partner countries were
invited because the G-7 agenda is "deep and diverse" and certain
agenda items "will apply to them."
He denied
that the invitations were "about trying to splinter them off or coax them
away from any other association or partnership that they might have with
another country. That's not the goal here. The goal is to unify around a set of
common principles and initiatives that the G-7 ... wants to advance in terms of
climate change, energy and food security."
In any
case, Naylor said expectations may need to be tempered, partly due to
pandemic-stretched governments' financial constraints. "As such, we're
unlikely to see much in the way of big new policies or programs," he said.
After the
meeting in Germany, many of the leaders will make their way to the NATO summit
in Madrid, running from Tuesday to Thursday. There they will discuss issues
facing the security alliance and its strategic path for the next decade.
The
meeting could mark a turning point for NATO's post-Cold War doctrine as it
tries to prepare for new threats and a sharper rivalry between the West and its
competitors. While the Ukraine war will again be the focus, the trans-Atlantic
alliance is sure to have an eye on Asia too, given concerns over China's rise
and the Sino-Russian relationship.
The
summit could offer glimpses of members' common positions -- or disagreements --
on these issues, as well as the tension in U.S. policy between prioritizing
Europe or the Indo-Pacific.
Kishida
said in a speech to Singapore's Shangri-La Dialogue earlier this month that he
has a "strong sense of urgency that Ukraine today may be East Asia
tomorrow." Japan has its own unresolved dispute with Moscow over a group
of islands it calls the Northern Territories.
With
South Korea's Yoon attending as well, the two East Asian neighbors, Australia
and New Zealand were reportedly considering holding their own parallel meeting
on the sidelines of the NATO summit. There is also talk of a U.S.-Japan-South
Korea trilateral meeting.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/G-7-NATO-talks-to-focus-on-Ukraine-with-Indo-Pacific-in-mix
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