(Bloomberg) -- Group of Seven leaders agreed that they want ministers to urgently discuss and evaluate how the prices of Russian oil and gas can be curbed to limit revenues flowing to President Vladimir Putin’s government in Moscow.
“We reaffirm our commitment to phase out our dependency on Russian energy,” leaders will say, according to the text of a draft statement seen by Bloomberg. “In addition, we will explore further measures to prevent Russia from profiting from its war of aggression.”
The move by the club of rich nations on the concluding day of their three-day summit in the Bavarian Alps comes as part of a broader push to choke off the profits Russia makes from energy exports that are helping to fund its invasion of Ukraine. The war has been the dominant topic at the gathering at Schloss Elmau.
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(All times CET)
Biden-Erdogan Meeting at NATO Summit Uncertain (11:30 a.m.)
A possible bilateral meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of this week’s NATO summit in Madrid is one of the most anticipated of the gathering in the Spanish capital, except neither are confirming it will happen.
At stake is whether Biden can do something to overcome Turkey’s opposition to Sweden and Finland joining the military alliance. The two men spoke earlier Tuesday and Erdogan was first to announce it to state television.
It’s pretty clear what he’s after. Erdogan pointedly said he wants to discuss F-16 fighter aircraft and mentioned seeing the president on the sidelines of NATO. The White House, in its own statement, confirmed the call and said Biden “looks forward” to seeing Erdogan.
Leaders Commit $4.5 Billion to Fight Famine (11:10 a.m.)
In a separate statement on global food security, leaders committed to providing an additional $4.5 billion “to protect the most vulnerable from hunger and malnutrition” and called on Russia to unconditionally end its blockade of Ukraine’s Black Sea ports and attacks on key infrastructure.
“We are strongly supporting Ukraine in resuming its agricultural exports to world markets, as well as UN efforts to unlock a safe maritime corridor through the Black Sea,” according to the statement.
G-7 Wants China to Intervene With Russia (10:45 a.m.)
In the draft of their statement, leaders called on China to use its influence with Russia to try to convince Putin to end what they called the “unjustifiable, unprovoked and illegal war against Ukraine.”
The government in Beijing should urge Russia to “stop its military aggression -- and immediately and unconditionally withdraw its troops from Ukraine,” according to the text of the statement.
They also said they are “gravely concerned about the human rights situation in China” and called on the government to respect universal human rights and fundamental freedoms, including in Tibet and in Xinjiang, where they said “forced labor is of major concern” to them.
G-7 Reference Chinese Competition Curbs (10:30 a.m.)
The leaders also referenced what they called “challenges posed by non-market policies and practices which distort the global economy” practiced by China.
“We will build a shared understanding of China’s non-transparent and market-distorting interventions and other forms of economic and industrial directives,” the statement said. “We will then work together to develop coordinated action to ensure a level playing field for our businesses and workers.”
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Monday that Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are expected to engage over the course of the next few weeks.
Biden to Leave Early for NATO Summit (10 a.m.)
Biden will leave the summit at Schloss Elmau early to head to Madrid for a meeting of NATO leaders that starts later on Tuesday, the White House said.
Leaders meeting in the Spanish capital will sign off on a document outlining the alliance’s priorities for the coming decade. The so-called Strategic Concept is set to label China a “systemic challenge” while also highlighting Beijing’s deepening partnership with Russia, according to people familiar with the matter. The previous version, published in 2010, made no mention of China and referred to Russia as a partner, wording that is set to be scrapped.
Biden Summit Bilaterals Limited (9:30 a.m.)
Biden had a handful of meetings with world leaders behind closed doors at the summit. He huddled with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida out of view of reporters, and they discussed the NATO summit, which will include Indo-Pacific leaders like Kishida for the first time, according to the White House.
Biden also spoke about food security, Ukraine and infrastructure in a private meeting with Senegalese President Macky Sall, who was invited to the summit as one of a number of special guests, according to the White House. The only public meetings Biden has held with G-7 counterparts was a Sunday huddle with Scholz and a separate meeting with Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Macron was also captured on camera telling Biden about a conversation he had with the UAE’s Mohammad bin Zayed about oil production.
G-7 Says Kremenchuk Attack a ‘War Crime’ (7:30 a.m.)
German Chancellor and summit host Olaf Scholz and his fellow leaders published a statement late Monday in which they condemned what they said was Russia’s “abominable” missile attack earlier in the day on a shopping mall in central Ukraine, which left at least 18 people dead and dozens injured.
G-7 leaders said that “indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians constitute a war crime” and vowed that Putin and those responsible would be held to account.
“We will continue to provide financial, humanitarian as well as military support for Ukraine, for as long as it takes,” according to the statement.
Yellen Presses Europeans on Price Cap for Oil (7 a.m.)
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is pressing European counterparts to embrace measures designed to enforce a price cap on Russian oil, a move that officials in Washington hope will maintain global supplies while at the same time limiting Moscow’s revenue.
Yellen spoke Monday with Constantinos Petrides, the finance minister of Cyprus, a major maritime player that serves as Europe’s largest ship-management center. The two “spoke about the goal of placing a price limit on Russian oil to deprive the Kremlin of revenue to finance their war in Ukraine while mitigating spillover effects for the global economy,” the Treasury said in a statement.
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