There has been no more consistent meeting of the richest democracies in the world.
They have to overcome major challenges as they gather in Germany for this year’s G7 summit.
War, famine, rampant inflation, recession and the energy crisis are on the list of threats they need to address.
If they fail, they know that the world will lose faith in their group of liberal democracies and in their ability to uphold the values they claim to believe in.
For US President Joe Biden, the priority is to take the lead in the war against Ukraine.
From the beginning he presented his presidency as an opportunity to invigorate the free world under his leadership. But since then, it has been threatened by President Vladimir Putin’s bold invasion of Ukraine and Russia’s renewed alliance with China. The world is divided between the free West and the autocracies of the East.
The G7
The Group of Seven Industrialized Democracies is the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Japan, France, Germany, and Italy, with the European Union also represented in the talks.
In addition to the permanent members of the G7, the leaders of Argentina, India, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa have been invited as guests.
The summit is held from Sunday to Tuesday at Schloss Elmau, a luxury hotel in the German Alps.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will address the leaders remotely, and G7 leaders will consider the response to the war and its impact on the global economy and food supply.
But Germany, which holds the rotating G7 presidency, hopes the group’s talks are not limited to the crisis in Eastern Europe.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the war should not lead the G7 to “neglect our responsibility in the face of global challenges such as the climate crisis and the pandemic.”
He warned that if G7 democracies do not support the poorest countries “powers like Russia and China will take advantage”.
Russia’s seizure of Severodonetsk provides a disastrous backdrop for the summit. Putin now has control of much of the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. The Russian advance will increase criticism of Mr Biden for not doing enough to lead the West’s fight against Putin from the front.
The U.S. has pledged billions of dollars in aid, much of it military support, but critics say efforts to bring the heavy weapons supplied by the Americans to the front have not been quick enough to slow Russia’s advance.
If Russia’s offensive is not reversed, the war could continue for years to come, with a crippling impact on the global economy and Western prestige. It will embolden strong men elsewhere, especially Chinese leader Xi Jinping in his belligerence towards Taiwan.
West plagued by weak and unpopular leadership
Mr. Biden must strengthen his allies by the likelihood that the war will continue indefinitely, well aware that his unity is being distorted. And it will remind them of what is at stake, while some seem willing to negotiate with Putin despite his naked aggression, murderous attack and the disastrous disappearance of thousands of Ukrainians in the land he has captured.
The West is divided by Ukraine and plagued by weak and unpopular leadership. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson clings to power after two partial electoral defeats, his party broken by discord. French President Emmanuel Macron has not won a majority in the French parliament. Biden’s approval rating has plummeted to 36%, just three points from Donald Trump’s all-time low of 33%.
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German summit host Olaf Scholz is too new to the job for his popularity to be seriously tested. He says the priority in Bavaria is to project unity. Putin wants to introduce a wedge into the Western alliance. It is believed that France and Germany are in favor of pressuring Ukraine to cede land in exchange for “peace.” Britain and America fear this would only leave Mr Putin with a beach head to launch more attacks and increase calm. But Putin’s near-complete conquest of the Donbas may give more force to the idea on the eve of this summit.
Leaders cannot ignore the warnings of hunger and starvation
The war is greatly affecting the world’s economies. It has pushed up fuel and food prices, worsening post-pandemic inflationary pressures. European nations know they need to get rid of Russian energy, but they know that doing so runs the risk of further rising inflation.
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The G7 must also address a massive war-induced food supply crisis that is being combined with climate change to threaten hunger and mass starvation. The Russian blockade of Ukraine’s grain, the worst drought in 40 years in the Horn of Africa and poor harvests in China and India could be combined to starve millions and starve the masses. Africa. UNICEF says if nothing is done, there will be “mass deaths of children under five.” This is a warning that world leaders cannot ignore.
Warm climate commitments could be further reduced
At the end of a long list, but probably the most important long-term issue, is climate change.
The G7 disappointed the world with lukewarm commitments when it met in Cornwall last year, but even those diluted promises can be further reduced. Germany is leading efforts to postpone plans to end funding for fossil fuel projects abroad as current crises continue. In reality, the world cannot afford further delays in international efforts to address the threat of climate change if a catastrophic rise in temperature is to be avoided.
This is a very important summit. The world is threatened by multiple challenges. Its main liberal democracies will have to find strength and unity to overcome them. If they fail, their enemies will be strengthened and the bloodshed and unrest of the last few months is likely to spread and worsen.