War in Ukraine, Taiwan, Sudan… What to remember from the meeting of G7 foreign ministers

Warnings and appeals for peace. Meeting in Japan since Sunday, the foreign ministers of the G7 countries (France, Japan, United States, Canada, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom) delivered their conclusions after two days of discussions. They notably mentioned the tense situations in the four corners of the planet: in Ukraine, Taiwan, Afghanistan and Sudan. Franceinfo summarizes the announcements made by the heads of diplomacy of the main industrialized countries.

On the war in Ukraine

They first sternly warned countries that would help Russia by promising to charge “high price”. They also pledged to continue to “intensify” sanctions against Russia and to step up efforts to prevent their circumvention by third countries. The final communiqué of their meeting also judges “unacceptable” there “irresponsible nuclear rhetoric” of Moscow which threatens to deploy arms in Belarus.

On the tensions around Taiwan

They expressed their opposition to “militarization activities” of Beijing in the South China Sea, ensuring that China’s extensive maritime claims had no “no legal basis”. “There is no change in the basic positions of the G7 members on Taiwan”the diplomats also said, believing “essestial” maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Their text evokes the “worries” re “the continued and accelerated expansion of China’s nuclear arsenal”calling him to work towards “stability through greater transparency”.

On the fighting in Sudan

The heads of diplomacy also “forcefully condemned” the fighting that has erupted since Saturday in Sudan. “We urge all parties to immediately end the violence, de-escalate tensions and restore civilian rule in Sudan”, they said. These clashes between the regular army and a powerful paramilitary force have already killed nearly 200 people, according to the UN.

A ceasefire “would make it possible to provide humanitarian aid to people affected by the fighting, to reunite Sudanese families and to ensure the safety of members of the international community in Khartoum”according to the words of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who spoke separately with the head of the regular army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, and that of the paramilitary forces, Mohamed Hamdane Daglo.

On Afghanistan and North Korea

They demanded the lifting “immediate” of the ban “unacceptable” Afghan women to work for non-governmental organizations and the United Nations, signed into law this month by the Taliban government in Afghanistan. They also condemned “systematic violations of the human rights of women and girls and discrimination against members of religious and ethnic minorities” by the Taliban authorities. They finally urged North Korea to “refrain“any new nuclear test or ballistic missile launch under penalty of “rapid, united and robust international response”.