Volodymyr Zelensky must plead Sunday at the G7 summit in Japan for new diplomatic and military support for Ukraine, from its allies but also from other countries which have so far refused to condemn the Russian invasion as the India and Brazil.
The Ukrainian head of state arrived at the G7 summit in Hiroshima on Saturday and is expected to deliver a speech on Sunday in this Japanese city, victim of the first atomic bombing in history in 1945 and which has since become a world symbol of peace.
His personal appearance in Hiroshima – where he was originally scheduled to speak only by videoconference – put the Russian invasion of Ukraine back at the center of the G7 debates, eclipsing other summit themes such as the relations of the main industrialized democracies with China.
Mr Zelensky has already spoken on Saturday with his European allies at the G7: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and European Council President Charles Michel .
He also met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who promised him that India would do “everything possible” to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, as well as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a bilateral meeting Sunday morning.
Mr. Zelensky could also meet face-to-face on Sunday with Brazilian President Lula, who has so far been very reluctant to condemn the Russian invasion: he declared last month that the United States must stop “encouraging war ” in Ukraine.
The presence of Mr. Zelensky in Hiroshima is “very important”, in particular to “intensify” the relations of Ukraine with the countries of the South, estimated Sunday Mr. Scholz during a press briefing.
A larger coalition of countries for peace in Ukraine would underline that a settlement of this conflict cannot be associated with a “freezing” of the current situation on the ground, but that “Russia must withdraw its troops”, added the German Chancellor.
“Russia shouldn’t bet that if it holds out long enough it will end up weakening support for Ukraine,” he warned.
The arrival of Mr. Zelensky in Hiroshima is “a way of building peace”, also observed Mr. Macron in front of journalists on Sunday.
This “avoids a partition of the world between those who clearly support Ukraine and those who say they support peace but without us sometimes knowing what that means behind it”, continued the French president.
Mr. Zelensky also has an appointment with US President Joe Biden on Sunday in the early afternoon in Hiroshima.
Mr. Biden overcame his long-standing reluctance on Friday by saying he was ready to allow other countries to supply Kiev with the fighter jets that Mr. Zelensky had long demanded, American-made F-16s. A “historic” decision, immediately greeted the Ukrainian president.
Washington will now support a joint initiative by its allies to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16s. During the duration of this training, which should take months, the West will decide the schedule for the delivery of the planes, their number as well as the countries which will provide them.
The White House, however, assured that the American doctrine had “not changed”.
Even with military aid now extended to fighter jets, “the United States does not facilitate or support attacks on Russian soil.” “The Ukrainians have consistently indicated that they are ready to respect this position,” Jake Sullivan, Joe Biden’s national security adviser, assured on Saturday.
After the publication of the final communiqué of the G7 on Saturday, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, accused the leaders of the group of wanting to “contain” both Russia and China.
Beijing also expressed its “strong dissatisfaction” after the press release from the seven (United States, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Canada) and the European Union which addressed a series of criticisms to it, while calling for “constructive and stable” relations with Beijing.
The G7 also urged China to “put pressure on Russia to end its aggression” against Ukraine.
21/05/2023 08:23:42 – Hiroshima (Japanese) (AFP) © 2023 AFP
