Image source, Getty Images
- author, Alex Smith
- Role, BBC News
- Report from London
-
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he expected “important decisions” at the G7 summit of the leaders of seven of the world’s richest countries to help his country fight invading Russian forces.
“A large part of the order will be allocated to Ukraine, our defense and economic resilience,” he said in a post on the Telegram app.
The White House says the G7 has made good progress on a US plan to use frozen Russian assets to raise $50bn (£39bn) annually for Ukraine.
On Thursday, Zelensky, who is attending the summit in Puglia, southern Italy, signed a security agreement with Japan. A similar agreement is expected to be reached with the United States.
Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock
The G7 countries – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States – have been important financial and military backers of Ukraine since the large-scale Russian invasion in 2022.
The Russian assets that the group froze, along with the European Union, when Moscow invaded Ukraine, amount to $325 billion. Most of the assets of the Russian Central Bank are in Belgium.
Under international law, countries cannot confiscate those assets from Russia and give them to Ukraine.
But pot generates a lot of interest — about $3 billion a year — so the idea is to use that interest in a creative way.
The plan is to obtain a loan in international markets, grant about $50 billion to Ukrainians every year, and use the $3 billion to pay interest on this loan every year.
But there are still a lot of technical issues to be resolved.
President Biden’s security adviser, Jake Sullivan, says “key elements” of the plan have been identified and a good outcome is likely.
In recent weeks, Russian officials have spoken out about the idea of taking interest from seized assets as “theft,” threatening retaliation.
With Biden in the middle of a close election contest, and many other Western leaders trailing in the polls, there is pressure to offer support to Ukraine while they still can.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, facing an escalating struggle ahead of next month’s general election, is set to announce up to $309 million to support Ukraine’s energy and humanitarian needs.
Voters will also soon face the party of French President Emmanuel Macron, which called for early parliamentary elections after a resounding loss to the far-right National Rally party in the European Parliament elections that took place last weekend.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has boasted that her country is heading to this summit with the “strongest government ever”, after a strong performance in the European elections last weekend.
The fragile political situation in many G7 countries is causing some observers to have low expectations about what can be achieved.
“If there is anything that will come out of this summit, it is the fear of a disaster before our eyes,” warned Nathalie Tocci, director of the Italian Institute of International Affairs, citing possible new governments led by Donald Trump in the United States and Turkey. The far right in France looms large.
Also on the agenda for the summit at Savilltree Resort are:
- War in Gaza: All G7 leaders had previously supported US President Joe Biden’s position A plan to end hostilities – Including an immediate ceasefire, hostage release, and increased aid
- Immigration: Italy is asking other countries to contribute financially to the Mattei Plan, which provides grants and loans to African countries to develop their economies. But many commentators suspect this may be a cover for Italy to crack down on immigration
- Economic security: The anti-coercion charter, adopted after last year’s meeting, aims to prevent countries – such as China and Russia – from using their economic power to impose their will on others. It is believed that the United States is keen to discuss this issue again this time
- AI safety: This issue was also raised last year, with the creation of a process to promote “safe, secure and trustworthy AI around the world”.
Pope Francis – who will become the first pope to attend the G7 summit – will address the topic of artificial intelligence at the conference.
He has previously called for global regulation of artificial intelligence, warning of its danger to ethics and human rights.
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