G7 urges China to press Russia to end war in Ukraine

Leaders of the world's top democratic industrialized nations cleared the decks for the arrival of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who touched down in Japan on Saturday to continue his appeal for help in ending the Russian invasion of his country.

The issuing of the communiqué, usually done on the last day of the annual G7 summit, was bumped up to today.

Among other things, the leaders committed "to intensifying our diplomatic, financial, humanitarian and military support for Ukraine; to increasing the costs to Russia and those supporting its war efforts, and to continuing to counter the negative impacts of the war on the rest of the world, particularly on the most vulnerable people."

The communiqué also called on China to use its influence with Russia to stop the war in Ukraine.

"We call on China to press Russia to stop its military aggression, and immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw its troops from Ukraine," it said. "We encourage China to support a comprehensive, just and lasting peace based on territorial integrity and the principles and purposes of the UN Charter," including in direct talks with Ukraine.

Zelenskyy, who arrived on a French government jet, began his meetings right away and was slated to meet with all of the G7 leaders to update them on the progress of the war against Russia.

Zelenskyy will make case to observer countries, too

It is, however, among the leaders of non-aligned countries — which have been invited to the annual meeting as observers — where the Ukrainian president stands to possibly make the most progress.

"I think the global south has voted largely with the G7, but they haven't participated in sanctions," said a senior Canadian official, speaking on background and referring to votes at the United Nations condemning Moscow's full invasion of Ukraine last year.

"They haven't participated in any kind of full-throated condemnation. I do think that with Zelenskyy here in person and presumably able to make his case directly to those leaders in bilaterals, he can stress that security is indivisible."

Late Saturday, Zelenskyy met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, their first face-to-face encounter since Russian troops unleashed a full onslaught on Feb. 24, 2022.

The two leaders have spoken twice by phone.

A report in the Hindustan Times late Saturday quoted Modi as telling the Ukrainian president that the whole world is feeling the weight of the ongoing war.

"I don't see this as a political or economic issue; for me, this is an issue of humanity, an issue of human values," Modi said in prepared remarks.

"You know more than any of us what is the suffering of war, but when our students came back from Ukraine last year, the description of the circumstances they gave then, I could understand the pain felt by you and Ukrainian citizens."

It was only just recently that Modi expressed his unbreakable friendship with Russia President Vladimir Putin. Convincing Modi to change his mind — given India's dependence on Russian military hardware and energy — will not be easy and perhaps that is where the G7's economic and diplomatic power may be useful. 

An expert said getting Modi onside will be pivotal if anything is going to change with respect to the geopolitical balance in Ukraine.

WATCH | G7 leaders meeting focuses on Russia, nuclear disarmament: 

G7 leaders meeting focuses on Russia, nuclear disarmament

2 years ago

Duration 1:55

G7 leaders gather in Hiroshima, Japan, and call on Moscow to return to nuclear disarmament efforts while imposing new sanctions on Russians who support the war in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy's participation "will overshadow almost certainly everything else that might come out of the summit," said Tristen Naylor of Cambridge University, who is also deputy director of the G7 Research Group, which tracks the work of the Group of Seven countries.

The fact the Ukrainian president feels comfortable enough to go to Japan speaks volumes about Ukraine's confidence and the direction of the war and the next day or so could represent a historic turning point in the war, he added. 

"This is a key opportunity for Zelenskyy to be in the room, not with just the G7 leaders but also with their outreach partners," Naylor said. 

For Zelenskyy, one thing is certain, Naylor said: "I don't think he would have come if he felt he would leave here empty-handed."

Advanced warplanes

G7 leaders had conversations around a proposal to train and supply Ukraine with advanced warplanes, the Canadian official said.

U.S. President Joe Biden told allies he'll support joint training efforts involving allied F-16s. Ukraine has been arguing for months it needs advanced fighters to retake territory lost to the Russians early in the war.

Separately, the topic of foreign interference was raised by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a working dinner with other leaders on Friday night.

"The prime minister raised it … fairly significantly, at the foreign policy dinner," said the Canadian official. The final communiqué, at Canada's insistence, contained language condemning foreign interference.

Message for China on interference

"We call on China to act in accordance with its obligations under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Vienna Convention on Consular relations, and not to conduct interference activities aimed at undermining the security and safety of our communities, the integrity of our democratic institutions and our economic prosperity," the communiqué said.

It's not just interference in democratic institutions, the official said, but also economic issues such as the theft of intellectual property.

The G7, composed of the United States, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Canada, has been increasingly focused, U.S. officials say, on managing what they see as considerable security risks with China while maintaining critical trade ties with the country.

G7 leaders planned to outline steps to protect sensitive technology, including outbound investment measures, in their communiqué, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters at a briefing in Hiroshima on Saturday.

Members of the group were looking to "de-risk, not decouple" from China, he said.

The leaders would outline a common set of tools to address economic coercion, including steps to build more resilient supply chains and efforts to protect sensitive technologies through export controls and outbound investment measures, Sullivan said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday that the decisions taken by the G7 showed they were bent on what he called the "double containment" of Russia and China.

"The task was set loudly and openly — to defeat Russia on the battlefield, but not to stop there, but to eliminate it as a geopolitical competitor," he said.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry statement accused the G7 of interfering in its internal affairs, including Taiwan. 

"It is important to remind the G7 that the days when a few Western countries colluded to manipulate the world are over," China's embassy in Japan said in a statement later in the day.