The second day of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Capri is underway. The summit, under the presidency of Deputy Prime Minister Antonio Tajani, got to the heart of things: the topics on the table are the defense of Ukraine and the Middle East issue after Iran’s attack on Israel, but also cybersecurity and the challenges of artificial intelligence (WHAT TO KNOW). “It is urgent that all friends of Ukraine make every effort to continue to provide it with what it needs to defend itself from Russian aggression,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba at the meeting. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will also be present on the day.
Iran: “G7 must not adopt unconstructive measures against us”
Iran has asked the G7 not to take “unconstructive measures” against it for the attack on Israel. “Undoubtedly, the adoption of unconstructive decisions towards Iran, and the irresponsible siding of Western countries to the Israeli regime regarding its measures that violate international law will encourage the regime to continue its evil deeds and adventurism, and will consequently exacerbate tensions in the region and the world,” the Iranian embassy in London said in a statement, as reported Irna.
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The next aid to Ukraine
The United States must unblock the new aid package in Congress, which will be voted on in the House on Saturday, Blinken added. For Kuleba, the new aid package for Kiev that the US House of Representatives will have to vote on Saturday are fundamental. “This is life and death,” the Ukrainian minister said, stating that “the only issue on my agenda here at the G7 is air defense.” And speaking to journalists, EU High Representative Josep Borrell reiterated the need to help Ukraine: “We cannot rely only on the United States, we must take our responsibilities. We have the Patriots, we have the anti-missile systems: we must take them out from warehouses and send them to Ukraine, where the war is escalating, and I’m sure we will do it quickly.”
Tajani: “If Kiev loses, Putin will never negotiate”
Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, opening the first session of the G7 in Capri, stated that “helping Ukraine means working for peace, because if Kiev loses Putin will never sit at the peace table”. According to the deputy prime minister, “in an international scenario with very strong tensions, the Italian-led G7 has the task of working for peace”. And he added: “We will certainly discuss the Middle East issue. We are friends of Israel, we support it, but we want a de-escalation in that area and we are all carriers of this peace initiative. We will also have to address how to sanction Iran in some way for the attack with hundreds of missiles and drones against Israel, and we will also have to deal with the situation regarding maritime traffic through Suez and the Red Sea”. On the sidelines of the G7, Tajani also held bilateral talks with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, his French counterpart Stéphane Séjourné and the British David Cameron.
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Towards an agreement on sanctions against Iran
According to what was already leaked yesterday, the agreement on sanctions on Iran by the G7 is on the table of the Foreign Ministers: the topic should be included in the final document. “It should be about individual sanctions on people involved in the supply chain of drones and missiles, which is the same chain of command that supplies them to Russia,” some sources stressed. The same issue was addressed by the extraordinary European Council in Brussels. The G7 in Capri “also wants to accelerate the delivery of air defense systems to Ukraine”, reported another source close to the summit’s work, explaining that “in their talks, the political directors and Sherpas are dealing with how advance the topic.”
Kuleba on Sky TG24: “As with Iran-Israel, allies prevent death and damage in Ukraine”
On the sidelines of the summit, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba reflected on the different forms of help provided to Kiev to fight Russia and to Israel to prevent threats from neighboring states. “The strategy of our partners in Israel-he said to Sky TG24– appears to have been to prevent harm and death, which is why they found ways to effectively intercept and shoot down Iranian missiles. So far in Ukraine their strategy seems to have been to help us recover from the damage. Our task today is to find a way by which our partners will design a mechanism, a way that will avoid death and destruction in Ukraine as well.”
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Giorgetti: “Full support for Kiev”
Meanwhile, in Washington, the inter-ministerial G7 is underway as part of the meetings of the International Monetary Fund. Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti explained that “the G7 countries have renewed their full, shared and convinced support for Ukraine, renewing their trust in Kiev, which will be able to overcome the difficulties”. At the summit, frozen Russian assets were discussed behind closed doors, a topic which – says Giorgetti – sees the Italian presidency grappling with a “very delicate task”.
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