G7 host Japan wants unity on China’s threat

G7 leaders gather in Japan this weekend amid global fears of a US debt default, deepening divisions over energy policy and no end in sight to the war in Ukraine.

But for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the top challenge for the annual summit of advanced economies will be whether it can produce a unified G7 response to China’s military ambitions and use of “economic coercion,” as the US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told last week. ,

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kishida has sought to align with G7 counterparts in the US, Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Canada by imposing tougher sanctions against Moscow and forging closer ties with the NATO alliance. is of. He has also approved a significant increase in Japan’s military spending to counter the threat from China.

When he hosts the summit in his family’s home city of Hiroshima, Kishida – who has repeatedly warned that “Ukraine could be tomorrow’s East Asia” – wants equally strong support from Europe to push the G7 to China. How to deal with Taiwan and the risk of conflict.

“It is important for the G7 to confirm that any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force or coercion is unacceptable,” Kishida said last month. “I am convinced that when something like Ukraine happens outside Europe it will lead to a unified response by the international community.”

The issue has been divisive for the West. French President Emmanuel Macron sparked an international outcry last month when he warned during a visit to China that Europe should not “get caught up in crises that are not ours”.

“The G7 rose to the occasion in the Ukraine crisis. , , But the Indo-Pacific poses its own challenges after Macron’s comments,” said Mireya Solis, Japan expert at the Brookings Institution. “Tokyo wants to see a strong statement that the grouping of democracies is standing up to the challenge from China.”

America is also insisting on a united front as much as possible. President Joe Biden’s administration has begun to emphasize that its China policy is focused on “de-risking” and not “decoupling”. US officials adopted the phrase from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in an attempt to reassure G7 allies that the US was not pushing for a more tough approach to Beijing.

A major focus of the Hiroshima summit will be the extent to which member states can outline a concrete response to Beijing’s raids on foreign companies and detention of corporate executives.

For the first time, the G7 plans to issue a separate statement on economic security alongside the main summit communiqué. The statement will include a commitment to “collectively prevent, respond to and combat economic coercion”, according to documents seen by the Financial Times.

However, people familiar with the discussions say China will not be named in the statement and the G7 is unlikely to reach agreement on specific new economic security tools beyond cooperation on supply chains to reduce dependence on China.

China has argued that it is a “victim of US economic pressure” rather than a perpetrator, saying Washington has stretched the concept of national security and “abusing” the use of export controls.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Friday, “If the G7 summit is to discuss the response to economic coercion, perhaps it should first discuss what the US has done.” “As G7 host, will Japan express some of those concerns to the US on behalf of the rest of the group that has been bullied by the US? Or at least speak a few words of truth?”

The US introduced sweeping export controls last year that will seriously complicate efforts by Chinese companies to develop cutting-edge technologies with military applications. Washington is now seeking the support of its allies as it finalizes a new outbound investment-screening mechanism aimed at China.

Professor Kazuto Suzuki at the university said, “It is possible to reach agreement that economic security is important, but there is still a large gap between the US, EU and Japan when it comes to implementing aggressive measures such as export controls.” ” of Tokyo. In March, Japan imposed export curbs on 23 different types of technology as part of a deal with the US and the Netherlands, but officials in Tokyo insisted the measures were not targeted against any one country.

Deeper economic ties with China also make the EU reluctant to follow Washington’s hardline approach. European capitals fear a return to Cold War status quo, with China in place of the USSR, leaving Europe an American satellite and a battleground between the worst of both.

European officials have insisted that the G7 should expand access to other countries, particularly developing economies in Asia, Africa and South America. “(Our) aim is not to turn the G7 into an anti-China club,” said a senior EU official involved in the preparation of the G7.

The G7 has invited leaders of non-member countries such as India, Indonesia, Brazil and Vietnam to the Hiroshima summit.

“We . , , calls for cooperation in addressing the challenges facing the international community. , , such as energy and food security, climate change, health and development,” Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said in a written interview with the Financial Times. “We would like to reaffirm the unity of the G7 in this regard.”

The comments come even as the G7 remains divided over energy policy, including Japan’s promotion of ammonia as a low-carbon energy source and Germany’s push for G7 support of public investment in the gas sector.

Christopher Johnstone, president of Japan at the US think-tank CSIS, said Tokyo was still keen to engage with non-G7 countries as Russia’s membership of the G20 fragmented that wider grouping.

“Tokyo is concerned that it has opened the door for an expansion of Chinese influence in the developing world, where criticism of Western hypocrisy resonates,” Johnstone said. “Kishida is attempting to downplay fact by bringing more voices to the table at the G7.”

G7 leaders gather in Japan this weekend amid global fears of a US debt default, deepening divisions over energy policy and no end in sight to the war in Ukraine.

But for Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the top challenge for the annual summit of advanced economies will be whether it can produce a unified G7 response to China’s military ambitions and use of “economic coercion,” as the US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told last week. ,

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kishida has sought to align with G7 counterparts in the US, Britain, France, Italy, Germany and Canada by imposing tougher sanctions against Moscow and forging closer ties with the NATO alliance. is of. He has also approved a significant increase in Japan’s military spending to counter the threat from China.

When he hosts the summit in his family’s home city of Hiroshima, Kishida – who has repeatedly warned that “Ukraine could be tomorrow’s East Asia” – wants equally strong support from Europe to push the G7 to China. How to deal with Taiwan and the risk of conflict.

“It is important for the G7 to confirm that any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force or coercion is unacceptable,” Kishida said last month. “I am convinced that when something like Ukraine happens outside Europe it will lead to a unified response by the international community.”

The issue has been divisive for the West. French President Emmanuel Macron sparked an international outcry last month when he warned during a visit to China that Europe should not “get caught up in crises that are not ours”.

“The G7 rose to the occasion in the Ukraine crisis. , , But the Indo-Pacific poses its own challenges after Macron’s comments,” said Mireya Solis, Japan expert at the Brookings Institution. “Tokyo wants to see a strong statement that the grouping of democracies is standing up to the challenge from China.”

America is also insisting on a united front as much as possible. President Joe Biden’s administration has begun to emphasize that its China policy is focused on “de-risking” and not “decoupling”. US officials adopted the phrase from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in an attempt to reassure G7 allies that the US was not pushing for a more tough approach to Beijing.

A major focus of the Hiroshima summit will be the extent to which member states can outline a concrete response to Beijing’s raids on foreign companies and detention of corporate executives.

For the first time, the G7 plans to issue a separate statement on economic security alongside the main summit communiqué. The statement will include a commitment to “collectively prevent, respond to and combat economic coercion”, according to documents seen by the Financial Times.

However, people familiar with the discussions say China will not be named in the statement and the G7 is unlikely to reach agreement on specific new economic security tools beyond cooperation on supply chains to reduce dependence on China.

China has argued that it is a “victim of US economic pressure” rather than a perpetrator, saying Washington has stretched the concept of national security and “abusing” the use of export controls.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Friday, “If the G7 summit is to discuss the response to economic coercion, perhaps it should first discuss what the US has done.” “As G7 host, will Japan express some of those concerns to the US on behalf of the rest of the group that has been bullied by the US? Or at least speak a few words of truth?”

The US introduced sweeping export controls last year that will seriously complicate efforts by Chinese companies to develop cutting-edge technologies with military applications. Washington is now seeking the support of its allies as it finalizes a new outbound investment-screening mechanism aimed at China.

Professor Kazuto Suzuki at the university said, “It is possible to reach agreement that economic security is important, but there is still a large gap between the US, EU and Japan when it comes to implementing aggressive measures such as export controls.” ” of Tokyo. In March, Japan imposed export curbs on 23 different types of technology as part of a deal with the US and the Netherlands, but officials in Tokyo insisted the measures were not targeted against any one country.

Deeper economic ties with China also make the EU reluctant to follow Washington’s hardline approach. European capitals fear a return to Cold War status quo, with China in place of the USSR, leaving Europe an American satellite and a battleground between the worst of both.

European officials have insisted that the G7 should expand access to other countries, particularly developing economies in Asia, Africa and South America. “(Our) aim is not to turn the G7 into an anti-China club,” said a senior EU official involved in the preparation of the G7.

The G7 has invited leaders of non-member countries such as India, Indonesia, Brazil and Vietnam to the Hiroshima summit.

“We . , , calls for cooperation in addressing the challenges facing the international community. , , such as energy and food security, climate change, health and development,” Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said in a written interview with the Financial Times. “We would like to reaffirm the unity of the G7 in this regard.”

The comments come even as the G7 remains divided over energy policy, including Japan’s promotion of ammonia as a low-carbon energy source and Germany’s push for G7 support of public investment in the gas sector.

Christopher Johnstone, president of Japan at the US think-tank CSIS, said Tokyo was still keen to engage with non-G7 countries as Russia’s membership of the G20 fragmented that wider grouping.

“Tokyo is concerned that it has opened the door for an expansion of Chinese influence in the developing world, where criticism of Western hypocrisy resonates,” Johnstone said. “Kishida is attempting to downplay fact by bringing more voices to the table at the G7.”