HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Japan on Saturday for talks with leaders of the world’s most powerful democracies. This personal appearance was to garner global attention as nations ramped up the pressure on Moscow over its 15-month invasion of Ukraine.
Strengthening international support is a top priority as Ukraine prepares for what appears to be a major push to retake territories captured by Russia in the war that began in February last year. Zelenskyy’s personal visit to the G7 summit comes just hours after the United States agreed to allow training on powerful American fighter jets, laying the groundwork for their eventual deployment to Ukraine.
Host country Japan said Zelenskyy’s admission stems from his “strong desire” to take part in talks with the Union and other countries that will have an impact on his country’s defense against Russia.
“Japan. G7. Important meetings with partners and friends of Ukraine. Security and enhanced cooperation for our victory. Peace will come closer today,” Zelenskyi tweeted upon arrival on a French-provided plane.
A European Union official, who asked to remain anonymous on condition to brief journalists on the deliberations, said Zelenskyy will attend two separate sessions on Sunday. One session will be exclusively with G7 members and will focus on the war in Ukraine. Another summit will include the G7, as well as the other nations invited to attend the summit, and will focus on “Peace and Stability”.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said President Joe Biden and Zelenskyy would have direct dialogue at the summit. On Friday, Biden announced his support for training Ukrainian pilots on US-made F-16 fighter jets, a precursor to the eventual delivery of those planes to Ukraine.
“It is necessary to improve[Ukraine’s]air defense capabilities, including the training of our pilots,” Zelenskyy wrote on his official Telegram channel after meeting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, one of several leaders he spoke to .
Zelenskyy also met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first face-to-face since the war, and briefed him on Ukraine’s peace plan, which envisages the withdrawal of Russian troops from the country before any negotiations.
Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Grushko accused Western countries of “continuing the escalation path” after announcing the possibility of deploying F-16s to Kiev.
In their joint statement on Saturday, the G7 announced that they would step up the pressure.
“Russia’s brutal war of aggression poses a threat to the entire world and violates basic norms, rules and principles of the international community. “We reiterate our unwavering support to Ukraine for as long as it takes to bring about a comprehensive, just and lasting peace,” the group said.
G7 leaders faced a balancing act as they attempted to address a range of global issues that demand urgent attention, including climate change, AI, poverty and economic instability, nuclear proliferation, and most importantly, the war in Ukraine.
China, the world’s second largest economy, is at the heart of many of these concerns.
There are growing fears that Beijing, which is steadily expanding its nuclear weapons program, may attempt to take Taiwan by force, which could spark a wider conflict. China claims the self-governing island as its own and regularly sends ships and warplanes in its vicinity.
The G7 on Saturday said they do not want to harm China and want “constructive and stable relations” with Beijing, “recognizing the importance of open dialogue with China and raising our concerns directly with China.”
They also called on China to pressure Russia to end the war in Ukraine and “support a comprehensive, just and lasting peace.”
North Korea, which has been testing missiles at a rapid pace, must completely abandon its nuclear bombing ambitions, “including any further nuclear tests or launches employing ballistic missile technology,” the leaders’ statement said.
The green light for F-16 training is the latest move by the Biden administration to equip Ukraine with more advanced and deadly weapons, after earlier deciding to send missile launcher systems and Abrams tanks. The United States has insisted that it send weapons to Ukraine to defend itself and has discouraged attacks by Ukraine on Russian territory.
“We have come to a point where it is time to look to the future again and say what Ukraine will need as part of a future military force to deter and defend against Russian aggression in the future can,” Sullivan said.
Biden’s decisions on when, how many and who will deploy the fourth-generation F-16 fighter jets will be made during training over the coming months, Biden told officials.
G7 leaders have introduced a new wave of global sanctions against Moscow and plan to increase the effectiveness of existing financial sanctions in a bid to stem President Vladimir Putin’s war effort. Russia is now the most sanctioned country in the world, but there are doubts about its effectiveness.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov criticized that the G7 summit aims to isolate both China and Russia.
“The task was set loud and clear: to defeat Russia on the battlefield, but not to stop there, but to eliminate it as a geopolitical competitor. In fact, any other country claiming an independent place in the world alliance will also suppress a competitor. Look at the decisions now being discussed and passed in Hiroshima, at the G-7 summit, aimed at double containment of Russia and China,” he said.
Russia had attended a few summits with the other seven countries before being removed from what was then the Group of Eight following the 2014 annexation of Crimea.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held separate one-on-one meetings with leaders including Modi, who is hosting the G20 world leaders’ meeting later this year.
India, the world’s largest democracy, has been measured in its comments on the war in Ukraine and avoided outright condemnation of the Russian invasion. While India has strong ties to the US and its Western allies, it is also a major buyer of Russian arms and oil.
Recent sanctions against Russia include tougher restrictions on already sanctioned individuals and companies involved in the war effort. More than 125 individuals and organizations in 20 countries are affected by US sanctions.
Leaders began the summit with a visit to a peace park dedicated to the tens of thousands who died in the world’s first atomic bomb blast in the war. Kishida, who represents Hiroshima in Parliament, wants nuclear disarmament to be the focus of discussions.
G7 leaders also discussed efforts to strengthen the global economy and tackle rising prices, which are straining families and government budgets around the world, particularly in developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The group reiterated its goal of raising up to $600 billion in funding for the G7’s global infrastructure development initiative, which aims to provide countries with an alternative to China’s investment dollars.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is set to skip the final day of the G7 summit because of floods earlier this week in northern Italy that have claimed at least 14 lives and devastated dozens of villages and towns.
“Biden, who abandoned plans to travel to Papua New Guinea and Australia after his stay in Japan in order to return to negotiations on the debt ceiling in Washington, also meets with leaders of the so-called Quad partnership, consisting of Japan . , Australia, India and the United States.
The G7 includes Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada and Italy, and the European Union.
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Associated Press writers Zeke Miller, Elaine Kurtenbach and Mari Yamaguchi in Hiroshima, Japan, and Joanna Kozlowska in London contributed to this report.