The leaders of the world’s richest democracies, gathered in the Bavarian Alps, ended their annual summit on Tuesday, promising to do everything possible to prevent Russia from using energy as a weapon to benefit from its invasion of Bavaria. Ukraine.
The G7 on Monday condemned Russia’s missile attack on a crowded shopping center in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, which killed up to 18 people as a war crime.
Canada took a step forward with a $ 200 million loan through the International Monetary Fund to help the Kyiv government “meet its urgent liquidity needs.”
Since the start of Russia’s military action against Ukraine, Canada has pledged $ 1.6 billion in loans and $ 1.3 billion in direct support to Ukraine, including $ 320 million in humanitarian assistance.
“It is important that the world does not lose focus and does not focus on what is happening in Ukraine,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “We must remain committed until Ukraine and democracy prevail.”
G7 leaders have spent the past three days at an Alps resort south of Munich assessing the impact of the Ukrainian war on the world economy, including rising inflation, food and food prices. fuels.
They will meet again on Wednesday in Madrid, Spain, under the NATO flag, where the Western military alliance plans a significant increase in the number of troops it has in high readiness, a response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia .
It will also expand existing battle groups in Eastern Europe, which were established five years ago to reassure Baltic allies in the wake of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Exploring a new energy strategy
Decisions have the potential to be costly for NATO countries whose finances are shaken by inflation and energy shock.
Canada leads one of the existing battle groups in Latvia. Trudeau was not compromised when asked if the NATO decision means more troops.
“We, like others, are developing plans to be able to grow rapidly, and these are conversations I look forward to having over the next few days in NATO,” he said.
MIRAR | Trudeau talks about Canada’s evolving presence in NATO:
Trudeau on Canada’s role in an expanding NATO
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is answering a question about Canada’s commitments to NATO as the organization announces a major jump in the number of soldiers in its high alert force.
In their final statement, G7 leaders said they are “working to ensure that Russia does not exploit its position as an energy producer to benefit from its aggression at the expense of vulnerable countries.”
They will continue to discuss ways to impose a price cap on Russian oil, an effort to starve the Kremlin’s war machine.
India, whose prime minister attended the summit as an observer, has been buying Russian oil at a discount since the invasion of Ukraine. Trudeau met with Indian Prime Minister Nerendra Modi, but neither side has said what was discussed.
Energy security in Europe, which is trying to end its dependence on Russian oil and natural gas, was a major topic in bilateral talks.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi expressed interest in talking to Trudeau.
“Canada is a big producer and therefore the perspective of Prime Minister Trudeau is important,” Draghi said, entering the meeting. “Let’s talk about that.”
When they finished, G7 leaders said that while they are taking steps to address the current energy crisis, they have not given up on their “climate and biodiversity goals, including the energy transition” away from fossil fuels.