G7 Hiroshima Summit Day 1: The Devastation of War, Ukraine and Zelenskyy’s Travel Surprise

it was a stormy morning g 7 Hiroshima Summit Started on Friday, May 19th. Perhaps the weather should have given an earlier warning that the day would be eventful.

It began with bilateral meetings between host Japan and recently arrived G7 leaders Hiroshima, Prime Minister fumio kishidaThe agenda for the morning included welcoming the German Chancellor olaf scholzprime minister of canada Justin Trudeauand the French President Emmanuel Macron,

The summit was then inaugurated with all nine leaders of the Group of Seven advanced economies. Joining were the Prime Minister of the host country Japan and the above three leaders United States of america President Joe BidenBritish Prime Minister Rishi Sunakand prime minister of italy Georgia Meloni, For the European Union, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President of the European Council charles mitchell were also present.

Throughout the day, Prime Minister Kishida of Japan chaired a series of bilateral talks and multilateral meetings with a key agenda in mind: ukraine,

Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to personally attend the G7 summit

Around noon, foreign media began broadcasting the news that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Will fly to Japan for the G7 summit.

Invited as a guest by host country Japan, the Ukrainian president was to address the G7 leaders online on May 19. Instead, he decided to appeal directly to her personally on Sunday, 21 May. Expect to ask them further. The war continues well into its second year as a military aid. Ukraine is also currently retaliating against invasion of russia,

In the weeks before the Hiroshima summit, the Ukrainian president traveled to Europe, meeting with individual leaders in Italy, France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

However, the trip to Japan marks the first time Zelensky has visited Asia.

Details of the rumored trip are somewhat vague, partly for security reasons. Nevertheless, local media have reported that should the visit materialize, the Kishida administration is expected to ensure it sees the remains of the city’s nuclear devastation. This means a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum.

Ukraine war top item on the agenda

For the G7 leaders, it was an afternoon marked by many sessions. But undoubtedly the most highly anticipated was on the war in Ukraine.

The G7 leaders continued their discussions despite Zelensky’s virtual absence on his behalf. His result included a flat condemnation of Russia’s behavior in his official statement for the day.

Friday’s Statement of the leaders on Ukraine Reads: “We condemn, in the strongest terms, Russia’s manifest violations of the Charter of the United Nations (UN) and the impact of Russia’s war on the rest of the world.”

Strong words of encouragement for Ukraine’s efforts in the war were also added. “Our support for Ukraine will not waver. We will not waver in our commitment to reduce the impact of Russia’s illegal actions on the rest of the world.”

Dealing with Sanctions

All leaders agreed to impose further sanctions on Russia. However, the nature and details of this decision are yet to be announced.

In addition, the G7 leaders agreed to “continue to work through the Russian Elites, Proxies, and Oligarchs (REPO) Task Force and the Enforcement Coordination Mechanism to enhance the effectiveness of our restrictive measures.”

a major talking point regarding russian ban There have been ways in which Moscow can circumvent the measures by doing business with countries such as China and India. The G7 measures are expected to tackle exactly this issue, although it is still unclear in what way.

Leaders pay their respects at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park

This was followed by a “strong message forworld without nuclear weapons,” as the leaders of the G7 and the European Union visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museum.

also met leaders atom bomb survivors, according to Japan’s foreign ministry.

Local media enthusiastically covered the day’s activities as it was the first time the G7 leaders gathered together in Hiroshima.

When the rain stopped around noon, the nine leaders stood up and laid wreaths of white flowers Hiroshima Memorial, This was the same place where in 2016 the then US President Barack Obama Gave my respect

The Hiroshima Council of A-Bomb Victims Organizations held a press conference on the evening of 19 May. Many of the attendees expressed their disappointment that the world leader was only at the museum for 40 minutes, and that he only spoke to one atomic bomb survivor.

The association’s director, Kunihiko Sakuma, argued that Japan should do more on the debate. “Japan is in a unique position as the only country to have faced a nuclear attack,” he said. “If Japan cannot send a strong message to the world against nuclear weapons, who will? I think the government should do more to appeal to other countries.”

Other Highlights: Scenic dinner meeting, security in the Indo-Pacific region and nuclear weapons

As the weather cleared, the leaders moved to another area of ​​Hiroshima for the evening. One of the most iconic tourist spots in Hiroshima was chosen for this part of their agenda: Miyajima,

Tight security arrangements have been made on the island for the summit. And the leaders are expected to take photos at the picturesque Itsukushima Shrine. It’s Already a Popular Instagram Spot Zucchini The gate is located just off the coast of the island.

The leaders held a working dinner discussing security issues in the Indo-Pacific and nuclear weapons. In key points, the G7 leaders condemned unilateral changes to the status quo.

PM Kishida also appealed to other signatory countries Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Furthermore, they reaffirmed their individual and collective commitment to seek a world without nuclear weapons.

fun trivia of the day

On social media, many netizens were happy to see that UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was wearing red socks. Allegedly they are the town’s baseball team, the Hiroshima Toyo Corp., Of course, Japan’s prime minister is reportedly a diehard fan of his hometown team.

Another fun fact comes from looking at what the leaders were served during their working lunches. Was there a culinary culture that Japan was trying to promote?

Fish marinated using local delicacies such as sparkling sake, koji fermentationAnd Hiroshima’s famous lemons were on the menu.

May 20: Attention turns to the Global South for a second day

The participating leaders on 19 May were from the G7 countries. The second day of the summit, however, will feature countries that have been invited to Hiroshima as observers.

They are Australia, Brazil, Comoros (African Union Chair), Cook Islands (Pacific Islands Forum Chair), Indonesia (ASEAN Chair), South Korea and Vietnam.

Expected to be a major point of discussion on the second day food security, The second is how to deal with economic pressure from countries like China.

A major non-G7 item on the agenda for Saturday, May 20, is expected to be the Quad meeting between Australia, India, Japan and the United States. This is bound to happen in the evening.

Follow up to the G7 Hiroshima summit Twitter, Facebook, Instagramand over here japan ahead,

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Author: Ariel Bussetto