Reports suggest that US President Joe Biden has lifted his initial opposition to the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine; the US was previously unwilling to allow its European allies to export the planes to Ukraine. However, White House officials have not commented on the speculation. The UK is expected to provide training for Ukrainian pilots, but has ruled out providing Typhoon jets. These developments are seen as a victory for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who has long pushed for Western allies to supply his country with the fighter jets.
Turkey’s Erdoğan vows to keep cutting rates to fight inflation if re-elected
CNN
23-05-19 10:46
Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has promised to continue his low interest rates policy if he is re-elected on 28 May. The Turkish lira crashed by more than 40% last year as Erdoğan's economic policies fuelled a jump in inflation. While central bankers across most of the world's biggest economies have been raising rates at a rapid clip to control surging prices, Turkey has been doing the opposite. "Please do follow me in the aftermath of the elections, and you will see that inflation will be going down along with interest rates," he told CNN's Becky Anderson in an exclusive interview.
The G7 summit, held in Hiroshima, Japan, is focusing on both heightened global economic uncertainty and a new common approach to China. Alongside climate change and artificial intelligence, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, has labelled the G7 as the “steering committee of the free world”, underlining the meeting's potential for a generational struggle in a new era of superpower rivalry. The seven countries involved in the summit include the US, UK, Japan, Canada, Germany, France and Italy. During the meeting, members have announced sanctions, including proposals to hit Russia’s diamond business, which has not yet been affected by western restrictions. They confirmed they will provide continued support for Ukraine for “as long as it takes”. Meanwhile, Russia has admitted to “problems” with oil and gas revenues, which have fallen to their lowest level in years, undermining the country’s ability to fund its war in Ukraine.
Labour's recent spending pledges ahead of the 2024 general election are uncosted, according to The Telegraph. Sir Keir Starmer is putting more promises for major public expenditures, among them £200bn to match US President Joe Biden's per capita expenditure and £100bn of Blair-era healthcare investment. However, estimates on costs for raising revenue from additional taxes, such as non-dom and VAT on private schools, are likely to be overoptimistic, while windfall taxes are likely to deter investment, the paper said. This leaves the party's most logical option as a mix of wealth taxes, which other countries have shown can prove counterproductive and encourage avoidance, evasion, and capital flight.
Removing trade barriers between Canada's provinces would have a significant impact on the country’s economy, according to Ryan Manucha, who recently co-authored a study into the issue. Research estimates that a 1% reduction in costs for professional and science services trading would be worth CAD713m ($538m) to the Canadian economy. The removal of internal trade costs would also permit products and workers to move more freely, aiding the flow of goods and services. The Canadian government's recently established Canadian Free Trade Agreement regulates domestic trade disagreements and helps guard against future disputes.
UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has cautioned that pessimism could trigger a "self-fulfilling prophecy" of economic decline in the UK. In an opinion piece for The Telegraph, he blamed both the Left and the Right for portraying the country in a negative light, insisting that there are clear signs of economic improvement under Chancellor Rishi Sunak; inflation is falling, a recession is likely to be avoided and there will soon be a reduction in energy bills. However, Hunt revealed that critics have tried to question their economic priorities - especially within the context of local election losses.
Florida’s new immigration law prompts travel advisory from Latino advocacy group
CNN
23-05-19 18:21
The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has issued a travel advisory for Florida, urging people to avoid the US state, ahead of a new immigration law that will take effect in July. The law requires employers with more than 25 staff to check their immigration status through the government’s E-Verify database. Employers who do not comply will be fined $1,000 per day until they can prove their workers are legal citizens. The immigration law, signed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis amid expectations he will seek the presidency, has been criticised by LULAC and has cost the state $1.1bn in economic activity, according to a study by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.
Leaders of the G7 are planning to focus on infrastructure and debt relief in a strategy to try to offset China's influence in lower income countries. Russia's war in Ukraine is among the concerns raised by G7 leaders as having a negative impact on low-income countries. The group is due to release a statement on economic security as a growing number of countries, particularly India, begin to increase their economic importance leading to a drop in the G7's influence. G7 leaders are becoming increasingly concerned about China's reach into developing markets through the development of infrastructure and extending finance.
The G-7 lords have launched the Coordination Platform on Economic Coercion, aiming to see off China's business bullying. The joint mechanism will target economic measures aimed at interfering with other states' affairs, with Bloomberg Singling out Australia and Lithuania as two countries that have felt China's wrath. The platform says China has used its economic weight to coerce nations in political disputes; however, an automatic response is not within the remit of the panel. Several G-7 members failed to agree on what stronger measures could be taken and by whom.
The G7 summit is seeking to adopt a common approach on Beijing and is planning to introduce measures to respond to Chinese "economic coercion" in an announcement on Saturday. A “platform” is to be unveiled which will provide a forum for the identification of economic vulnerabilities and coordination of protective measures. This follows two years of efforts by the US administration of Joe Biden, helped by Japan, to foster unity among G7 members on challenges posed by Beijing. China has taken issue with the G7’s language on “economic coercion”, saying in a statement "it is, in fact, the United States itself that instigates coercive diplomacy".
China has criticized the G-7 nations’ new joint mechanism aimed at counteracting economic coercion, accusing them of interference within China's internal affairs. China deems the G-7 has performed this interference on topics such as Tibet, Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Taiwan as well as creating tensions in the South and East China Seas, according to an embassy spokesman. The G-7 Coordination Platform on Economic Coercion detects perceived hostile actions, largely aimed at China. China urged the US to stop “bullying” and disclosed their desire for the G-7 to shift from a Cold War mindset.
Leaders from the G7 countries have agreed to launch an initiative aimed at countering "economic coercion" and vowed to ensure any such efforts will fail and face consequences. While the statement did not name China, Western officials have said that is understood to be its target. The new Coordination Platform on Economic Coercion will use an early warning system and rapid information-sharing tools. The G7 leaders also vowed to support the supply chain of middle and low-income countries so they will be more resilient and less vulnerable.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has made a surprise visit to Hiroshima to participate in the Group of Seven (G7) economic summit after he was invited by President Joe Biden. The meeting was said to be focused on mobilising allies against the growing economic power of China, but Zelensky's appearance has overshadowed discussions around Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. The G7 leaders' joint statement called on China to press Russia to stop military aggression, specifically citing the need for a comprehensive peace deal based on Ukrainian territorial integrity and UN Charter principles. According to reports, President Biden is to meet Zelensky and to provide flight training to the Ukrainian military, despite earlier dismissing Ukraine's request for F-16 fighter jets. The US President had initially planned for a longer and more ambitious trip, but cancelled stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia to focus on talks with congressional leaders over debt limitation and avoiding default.
The G7 has agreed on a new set of measures to improve economic security and strengthen supply chains in order to adopt a common approach to de-risk and diversify economic ties with China and Moscow. The group emphasized the need to increase cooperation with emerging economies specifically in the areas of infrastructure, digitisation and trade as they attempt to find new markets and sources of investment. A new coordination platform against economic coercion will be created, along with steps to counter market-distortive practices, protect technology in critical areas and secure critical goods through global partnerships. The group refrained from mentioning China or Russia, even though most of the steps announced seemed to be aimed at dealing with alleged “coercive” actions taken by the two countries. The G7 countries have stood united in condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and what they view as Beijing’s unfair and retaliatory measures in various areas.
Leaders of the seven wealthiest countries, known as the G7, have called on China to pressure Russia to end its war on Ukraine. The G7 members praised China and sought “constructive and stable relations” whilst also urging cooperation to face challenges of climate change, biodiversity, global health concerns, debts and financing needs of vulnerable countries, and economic stability. However, the statement’s release coincided with the group’s expression of their “serious concern” about the situation in the East and South China Seas. There was no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea and the G7 opposes China’s militarization activities in the region the group said. The G7 leaders also expressed worries about human rights in China, including Hong Kong, Tibet, and Xinjiang and vowed to counter types of “economic coercion” while also avoiding “unduly limiting trade and investment.”
The G7 has urged Beijing to exert pressure on Russia to withdraw troops from Ukraine in its strongest communique criticising China. Members expressed concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas, opposing unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion, and supporting a peaceful resolution of growing tension in the Taiwan Strait. The G7 members stated that they were prepared to build stable relationships with Beijing and to voice their concerns directly, despite the growing military and economic security threats posed by China.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met at the G7 summit in Hiroshima where Zelensky expressed his thanks for the G7’s support. A joint statement also reasserted its intention to decrease its economic dependency on China while specifically calling on the country not to engage in “interference activities”. China was warned must “act in accordance with its obligations” under treaties governing diplomatic relations and not to “conduct interference activities aimed at undermining the security and safety of our communities, the integrity of our democratic institutions and our economic prosperity”, which was added at Trudeau’s request.
Russia and China hit back at a G7 that saw them as a threat
CNN
23-05-21 05:42
Russia and China have reacted angrily to the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, which pledged new measures designed to target Russia and spoke out about concerns over China. The Moscow government condemned the G7’s agenda for seeking to “deter” both countries whilst the Chinese Foreign Ministry accused the G7 of “hindering international peace”. Both Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine and how to confront a more assertive China have dominated the three-day gathering of the world’s big democracies taking place in Japan, which counts both amongst its neighbours.
The G7 leaders accused China of economic coercion, military expansion, breaches of the Vienna Convention, human rights abuses in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, and supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine. The G7 devoted an entire section about China and mentioned it 20 times. In contrast, the Quad did not mention China at least once in its 3,000-word statement. However, the G7's focus on China demonstrates the Quad's success in achieving its objectives. The Quad countries have diverse interests, but they agree on managing the rise of China. The Quad's campaign has driven awareness of Beijing's ambitions since 2018.
Leaders from the Quad - the US, Japan, India, and Australia - caused the flagship dinner at the G7 summit to be delayed due to an important meeting among the leaders in Hiroshima. The Quad aims to contain China's ambitions, however, the strongest lines on Beijing of this year’s tandem summits did not come from the group, but from the G7. The Quad did not mention China once in its 3000-word statement, while the G7 devoted an entire section to Beijing and mentioned China 20 times, accusing China of distorting the global economy, human rights abuses, and enabling Russia’s war in Ukraine by not condemning it.
