G7 struggles to win over swing nations courted by China, Russia
Brazil leader Lula showed little sign of moving closer to G7. US, allies appeal to emerging economies to uphold UN Charter
Heading into the G7 summit, the US and its allies knew they needed to do more to win over global swing nations also courted by China and Russia. The weekend meeting in Japan showed they face a long road ahead.
The gathering in Hiroshima, the site of the first atomic bombing in 1945, showcased the horrors of nuclear weapons following threats by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to use them in Ukraine. A surprise visit from its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, gave him a chance to appeal to leaders from emerging economies who were also invited to the summit and have taken a neutral – and at times ambivalent – stance on the war.
Yet tangible progress was hard to see for the Group of Seven wealthy nations, even though some Western officials said the bloc was heading in the right direction compared with years past.
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Three key invited guests – Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, India's Narendra Modi and Indonesia's Joko Widodo, who collectively oversee a quarter of the world's population – spoke of the need for peace in general terms without endorsing the G7 view on Ukraine. One Brazilian official said the grouping was even hurting peace efforts by clearly taking sides in the war.
Lula was caught off guard by Zelenskyy's appearance, with Brazilian officials describing it as a potential "trap." They didn't meet over the weekend despite a plea from French President Emmanuel Macron, who urged Lula to understand that there is an aggressor and a victim in Ukraine, according to an Elysee official. The Brazilian leader had previously said the US and Europe were also to blame for Putin's invasion.
But there was little sign throughout the summit that Lula was moving closer to the G7 stance on Ukraine, according to a Western official who asked not to be identified to discuss confidential information. The official said Lula seemed more focused on providing an off-ramp for Putin and avoiding an escalation in the war rather than on securing Ukraine's territorial integrity.
