At the center of the talks of the G7 foreign ministers at the plenary meeting in London were issues related to Russia and China.
A high-ranking State Department official told reporters about this.
“We started at 8:45 am and had an hour and a half discussion on China, followed by shorter, 30 minute talks on Myanmar, Libya and Syria;
an hour and a half talk about Russia, including issues related to Ukraine and Belarus;
A 30-minute talk on Afghanistan - and that was the final point of the ministerial meeting, ”he said at a briefing.
According to him, during the talks, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken voiced the position of President Joe Biden that the American side wants "stable, predictable relations with Russia," but not without conditions.
“We do not strive for escalation, but we will not leave reckless and aggressive behavior on her part unanswered.
And, as you could see, our partners and allies strongly support us in terms of our reaction to Russia's actions, ”the State Department stressed.
By the way, in the communique following the meeting of the foreign ministers, this rhetoric was repeated almost word for word: "we confirm our interest in stable and predictable relations with Russia ... we will strengthen our collective capabilities to counter and contain Russia's behavior that threatens the international order."
With a reservation about interaction in those areas that are of common interest.
G7 Foreign Ministers Meeting in London, 4 May 2021
Reuters
© Stefan Rousseau
However, the unity of partners, as it turned out, does not apply to all issues.
Discrepancies arose between Washington and Berlin because of the Nord Stream 2 project, as reported by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas following a personal meeting with his American counterpart: “We also talked about Nord Stream 2 and once again exchanged known positions.
There is no news. "
At the same time, as the representative of the State Department said during the briefing, China was the main topic of discussion of the G7 foreign ministers.
“We started with him (China. -
RT
), because for us it was the most important item on the agenda among many other important topics that we had to discuss.
And, again, by and large, there is agreement that we all want China to be an integral part of the international order, but in order to achieve this, it must abide by the rules of this international order, ”the American official stressed.
The US authorities accuse Beijing of using "economic coercive measures" against those who "spoke openly" against Beijing's policies.
"They (the PRC authorities. -
RT
) are trying to use their economic power to intimidate those who are engaged in this, and also hope that in this way it will be possible to prevent similar actions on the part of others," the State Department said.
The topic of relations with Russia and China was raised even before the G7 meeting.
On the eve of the meeting of the G7 foreign ministers, British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said that the United Kingdom "is working to ensure that the G7 jointly develop an operational countermeasure mechanism" to combat "Russian disinformation."
"Deliberately Narrowing Discourse"
Let us recall that the authorities of the Western countries have long named Russia and China as their key opponents.
This, in particular, was stated in the US National Defense Strategy published by the Pentagon in 2018.
And the arrival of Joe Biden in the White House did not soften the rhetoric of American politicians and the military.
Earlier, the head of the US Strategic Command, Admiral Charles Richard, even announced the possibility of a nuclear war with Russia or China.
Commenting on this statement, US Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that the department shares such concerns, although it does not want an escalation of this magnitude.
American military personnel
Reuters
© Bryan Woolston
In Japan's 2020 defense report, it was Beijing and Moscow that were identified as sources of potential threats.
According to the authors of the document, the Chinese initiative "One Belt - One Road" can serve to create Beijing points not only for trade, but also for military purposes in the Indian and Pacific regions.
Also, the Japanese government is seriously concerned about the activity of China in the South China Sea and in relation to the Senkaku Islands.
They are dissatisfied in Tokyo with the defense activity of Russia, which, according to the authors of the report, "continues to maintain the presence of its armed forces in the northern territories."
This is how the group of Russian islands of the Kuril ridge is called in Japan.
London also regularly issues accusations against Beijing and Moscow.
As UK Defense Chief of Staff Nick Carter said in the fall of 2020, Britain's national security is threatened by countries "from among the authoritarian powers," including Russia and China, which are waging a "political war" against it.
According to experts, the claims of Western countries against Beijing and Moscow have no basis.
“Speaking about Russia's 'reckless' behavior, the State Department most likely meant the recent Russian exercises, which took place on Russian territory.
At the same time, no international agreements were violated.
But the military activity of the non-Black Sea NATO countries in the Black Sea really raises questions, "Pavel Feldman, deputy director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Problems of the RUDN University, said in a commentary on RT.
Similarly, the accusations against Beijing sound strange, the expert said.
“When the State Department says that China is allegedly violating“ international rules, ”it only brings a smile, because the United States itself has been breaking these rules over the past decades.
And China gained its economic power by acting according to the liberal economic rules previously established by the collective West.
And as a result, China turned out to be more effective in this field, ”Feldman said.
Flags G7
Reuters
© Alessandro Bianchi
The expert believes that the main concern of the G7 countries is the rapprochement between Beijing and Moscow, especially in the currency sphere.
“Russia and China are moving away from the dollar system in mutual settlements.
This is a blow to the financial strength of the United States, a serious challenge, ”Feldman added.
A similar point of view is shared by the general director of the Center for Political Information, Alexei Mukhin.
“The leadership of the G7 countries deliberately narrows the discourse of their discussions, focusing on Russia and China.
In many ways, politicians in these countries are trying to resolve their internal political issues by talking about the threat of Russia or China.
Since there is no real reason to consider these countries as adversaries or a threat to the G7 countries.
As for the sanctions that are being introduced against Russia, as well as tariff barriers against the PRC, this is a manifestation of unfair competition, "the interlocutor of RT said.
NATO branch
According to experts, after the collapse of the G8, the G7 format began to rapidly become similar to the North Atlantic Alliance in its rhetoric and declared goals.
“Apparently, the G7, like NATO, is turning into an anti-Russian and anti-Chinese alliance,” says Alexei Mukhin.
Reuters
This year, the G7 summit is to take place on June 11-13 in the UK.
On the eve of the meeting of the leaders of the countries, a meeting of the foreign ministers of the G7 countries took place in London.
These negotiations were the first face-to-face meeting of all group members in two years.
Let us remind you that the “Big Seven” refers to the format of cooperation between major world powers that emerged at the end of the last century.
Initially, the negotiations were intended to coordinate the positions of countries in the spheres of the world economy and politics between the governments of Great Britain, Germany, Italy, USA, France, Japan and Canada.
In the 1990s, the Russian Federation joined the format, after which the G7 became the G8.
However, in 2014, this composition disintegrated, the reason was the events in the Donbass and the reunification of the Crimea and the Russian Federation.
In 2014, Russia was supposed to host the G8 summit, but the other participants in the format ignored the meeting, agreeing to hold the summit without Moscow's participation.
Now Russia is not interested in the restoration of the G8 and considers this format to be outdated.
This was announced earlier by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
“The G7 format today is simply a club of US associates on the world stage.
This became clear after the paths of this group of countries parted with Russia.
Today the G7 has become an instrument of American politics in the world arena, ”concluded Pavel Feldman.