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world news Dialuna 14 Juni 2021

G-7 leaders agree on vaccines, China and taxing corporations

(AP) — Leaders of the Biden flew from the summit
Group of Seven wealthy in Carbis Bay to have tea with
nations staked their claim the queen at Windsor Castle.
Sunday to leading the He is scheduled to attend a
world out of the corona- NATO summit in Brussels
virus pandemic and crisis, on Monday and to hold talks
pledging more than 1 bil- with Russian leader Vladimir
lion coronavirus vaccine Putin in Geneva on Wednes-
doses to poorer nations, day.
vowing to help develop-
ing countries grow while The G-7 also made ambitious
fighting climate change declarations during their
and backing a minimum meetings about girls’ educa-
tax on multinational tion, preventing future pan-
firms. demics and financing greener
infrastructure globally
At the group’s first face-to-
face meeting in two years, On climate change, the
the leaders dangled promises “Build Back Better for the
of support for global health, World” plan promises to offer
green energy, infrastructure financing for infrastructure
and education — all to dem- — “from railways in Africa
onstrate that international in a century and a climate panies to stop corporations on with us.” to wind farms in Asia” — to
cooperation is back after the catastrophe that is destroy- from using tax havens to help speed up the global shift
upheavals caused by the pan- ing our planet, they have avoid taxes, a move champi- Johnson, the summit’s host, to renewable energy. The
demic and the unpredictabil- completely failed to meet the oned by the United States. wanted the three-day meet- plan is a response to China’s
ity of former U.S. President challenges of our times.” ing to fly the flag for a “Glob- “belt and road” initiative,
Donald Trump. Biden also wanted to per- al Britain,” his government’s which has increased Beijing’s
Despite Johnson’s call to suade fellow democratic push to give the midsized worldwide influence.
During their three-day sum- “vaccinate the world” by the leaders to present a more country, newly detached
mit in southwest England, end of 2022, the promise of unified front to compete from the European Union, All G-7 countries have
the G-7 leaders wanted 1 billion doses for vaccine- economically with Beijing outsized global influence. pledged to reach net-zero
to convey that the club of hungry countries — coming and strongly call out China’s carbon emissions by 2050,
wealthy democracies — Can- both directly and through “nonmarket policies and hu- Yet Brexit cast a shadow over but many environmentalists
ada, France, Germany, Italy, donations to the internation- man rights abuses.” that goal during the summit say that will be too little, too
Japan, the United Kingdom al COVAX program — falls on the coast of southwest late.
and the United States — is far short of the 11 billion The language on China in England. European Union
a better friend to poorer na- doses the World Health Or- the G-7 leaders’ communi- leaders and Biden voiced Naturalist David Attenbor-
tions than authoritarian rivals ganization said is needed to que from the meeting was concerns about problems ough addressed the lead-
such as China. vaccinate at least 70% of the more muted than the United with new U.K.-EU trade ers by video Sunday, warn-
world’s population and truly States has used, but Biden rules that have heightened ing that humanity is “on the
end the pandemic. said he was satisfied. On tensions in Northern Ireland. verge of destabilizing the en-
“This isn’t about impos- China’s economic behavior, tire planet.”
ing our values on the rest of Half of the billion-dose the group said it would “con- But overall, the mood was
the world,” British Prime pledge is coming from the sult on collective approaches positive: The leaders smiled “If that is so, then the deci-
Minister Boris Johnson told United States and 100 million to challenging non-market for the cameras on the beach sions we make this decade
reporters at the end of the from Britain. Canada said it policies and practices which at cliff-fringed Carbis Bay, a — in particular the decisions
seaside summit on the rug- also would give 100 million undermine the fair and trans- village and resort that became made by the most economi-
ged Cornwall coast. “What doses, and France pledged parent operation of the global a traffic-clogged fortress for cally advanced nations — are
we as the G-7 need to do is 60 million. Altogether, the economy.” the meeting. the most important in hu-
demonstrate the benefits of leaders said they pledged 870 man history,” the veteran
democracy and freedom and million doses “directly over The leaders also said they The prime ministers and documentary filmmaker said.
human rights to the rest of the next year,” with further would promote their val- presidents also mingled with
the world.” contributions taking the total ues by calling on China to Queen Elizabeth II at a royal As the leaders met behind
to the “equivalent of over 1 respect human rights and reception, ate steak and lob- fences and barbed wire, thou-
U.S. President Joe Biden, billion doses.” fundamental freedoms in ster at a beach barbecue and sands of environmental pro-
who was making his first for- Xinjiang, where Beijing is ac- watched an aeronautic dis- testers gathered throughout
eign trip as leader, said it was Former British Prime Min- cused of committing serious play by the Royal Air Force the weekend outside the ring
an “extraordinary, collabora- ister Gordon Brown said the human rights abuses against Red Arrows during their stay of steel to accuse the G-7 of
tive and productive meeting” lack of a more ambitious vac- the Uyghur minority, and in by the sea. missing a chance to prevent
that showed “America’s back cination plan was “an unfor- the semi-autonomous city of climate catastrophe.
in the business of leading the givable moral failure.” Hong Kong. America’s allies were vis-
world alongside nations who ibly relieved to have the U.S. Members of the Extinc-
share our most deeply held Not every European power back as an engaged interna- tion Rebellion climate activ-
values.” But Biden said the leaders has viewed China in as harsh tional player after the “Amer- ism group blocked the main
were clear that the commit- a light as Biden, who has ica First” policy of the Trump road of the town of St. Ives
But health and environmen- ments they made to donate painted the rivalry with the administration. on Sunday, banging drums
tal campaigners were dis- doses wouldn’t be the end. techno-security state as the and sitting on the road. Else-
tinctly unimpressed by the The U.S. president said get- defining competition of the Johnson called Biden “a where, hundreds of surfers
details in the leaders’ final ting shots into arms around 21st century. breath of fresh air.” Ital- and kayakers paddled out to
communique. the world was a “gigantic, ian Premier Mario Draghi sea to urge better protection
logistical effort” and the goal “The G-7 is not a club hostile said the president “wanted for the world’s oceans.
“This G-7 summit will live might not be accomplished to China,” French President to rebuild what were the
on in infamy,” said Max Law- until 2023. Emmanuel Macron said. “It’s traditional alliances of the “G-7 is all greenwashing,”
son, the head of inequality an ensemble of democra- United States after the pe- protesters sang during one
policy at the international aid The G-7 also backed a mini- cies that (would) work with riod of Trump, during which march. “We’re drowning in
group Oxfam. “Faced with mum tax of at least 15% on China on all world topics these alliances were seriously promises, now’s the time to
the biggest health emergency large multinational com- that China is ready to work cracked.” act.”