Biden G7, NATO to-do list: unite allies, fight autocracy, attack
COVID-19
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[June 07, 2021]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Joe
Biden's meeting with leaders of the G7 leading industrial economies in
an English seaside village this week will usher in a new focus on
rallying U.S. allies against common adversaries - the COVID-19 pandemic,
Russia and China.
New COVID-19 variants and rising death tolls in some countries will loom
large during the gathering from Friday to Sunday, alongside climate
change, strengthening global supply chains and ensuring the West
maintains its technological edge over China, the world's second-largest
economy.
Biden, a Democrat, vowed to rebuild relations with allies after four
rocky years under former President Donald Trump, who pulled Washington
out of several multilateral institutions and threatened at one point to
quit NATO.
"In this moment of global uncertainty, as the world still grapples with
a once-in-a-century pandemic, this trip is about realizing America’s
renewed commitment to our allies and partners," Biden wrote in an
opinion piece published by the Washington Post on Saturday.
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The gathering will put Biden's "America is back" motto to the test, with
allies disillusioned during the Trump years looking for tangible,
lasting action.
It is a pivotal moment for the United States and the world, former
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on CNN on Sunday.
"Is international cooperation going to be restored or are we still in
this world where nationalism, protectionism and to some extent
isolationism are dominating?" Brown asked.
UNITING AGAINST RUSSIA
Russia will be at the forefront of attention at the G7 summit in
Cornwall, England, and the days afterward when Biden meets with European
leaders and NATO allies in Brussels, before heading to Geneva to meet
Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The recent ransomware attack on JBS, the world's largest meatpacker, by
a criminal group likely based in Russia, and Putin's financial backing
for Belarus after it forced a Ryanair flight to land so it could arrest
a dissident journalist on board, are pushing U.S. officials to consider
sharper action.
On the sidelines of the NATO summit, Biden is also expected to meet with
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, a crucial session between the sparring
NATO allies after Ankara's purchase of Russian defense systems angered
Washington and risked driving a wedge within the alliance.
CORPORATE TAX HIKES
G7 finance ministers reached a landmark global deal on Saturday to set a
minimum global corporate tax rate of at least 15%, potentially hitting
giant tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Facebook Inc and
Amazon.com Inc. Biden and his counterparts will give the deal their
final blessing in Cornwall.
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President Joe Biden delivers remarks at an annual Memorial Day
Service at Veterans Memorial Park, Delaware Memorial Bridge, New
Castle, Delaware, U.S., May 30, 2021. REUTERS/Ken Cedeno/File Photo
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COVID-19 AND IP WAIVERS
The Biden administration, which on Thursday detailed its plans to
donate 80 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines globally by the end of
June, is leaning heavily on allies to follow suit as the global
pandemic death toll approaches 4 million, U.S. and diplomatic
sources say.
Washington reversed course last month and backed negotiations over
waivers for intellectual property protections at the World Trade
Organization to speed vaccine production in developing countries,
much to the chagrin of Germany and Britain.
European diplomats say they see little common ground on the issue,
and argue that any WTO compromise would take months to finalize and
implement. That may prove a moot point if sufficient vaccine doses
are shared with developing countries to slow - and eventually halt -
the pandemic.
CLIMATE CHANGE DISCLOSURES
Biden announced plans in May to require U.S. government contractors
and financial institutions to be more transparent about the climate
change risks faced by their investments, and administration
officials are pushing other countries to adopt similar plans.
The UK also wants governments to require businesses to report such
risks as a way to boost investment in green projects. But agreement
on a way forward is unlikely to come in June. A deal could emerge at
a U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in November.
G7 countries also have different views on carbon pricing, which the
International Monetary Fund views as a key way to curb carbon
dioxide emissions and reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
CHINA'S FORCED LABOR
The Biden administration will urge allies to unite against China
over allegations of forced labor in Xinjiang province, home to the
Muslim Uighur minority, even as it seeks to maintain Beijing as an
ally in the climate change fight.
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Sources following the discussions say they expect G7 leaders to
adopt strong language on the forced labor issue. China denies all
accusations of abuse in Xinjiang.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Humeyra Pamuk and Steve Holland;
Editing by Heather Timmons and Peter Cooney)
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