The G7 on Sunday said that time was running out for Iran to agree to a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and warned Russia of “massive” consequences if it invades Ukraine, while the US secretary of state next flew to Southeast Asia as part of Washington’s push for peace and stability in the region.
G7 foreign ministers held a two-day meeting in Liverpool, England, seeking to present a strong, united front against global threats.
On Iran, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Liz Truss said that resumed talks in Vienna were the Islamic republic’s “last chance to come to the negotiating table with a serious resolution.”
Photo: Reuters
The final communique from the talks said that Iran “must stop its nuclear escalation and seize the opportunity to conclude a deal, while this is still possible.”
Talks restarted on Thursday.
Truss’ comments are the first time a signatory to the original deal has given such an ultimatum.
Russia’s troop buildup on the border with Ukraine dominated talks, given the invasion fears.
Truss said there was “very much a united voice ... that there will be massive consequences for Russia in the case of an incursion into Ukraine.”
In the final communique, ministers unanimously backed Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
All options, including wide-ranging political and economic sanctions, are on the table if Russia ignores a diplomatic solution, officials said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew on to Southeast Asia as part of Washington’s push for “peace, security and prosperity” in the Indo-Pacific region.
Britain’s G7 presidency this year has been dominated by responding to Beijing’s alleged widespread domestic rights abuses, as well as creeping authoritarianism in Hong Kong.
Earlier this week, a panel of human rights experts and lawyers in London said that the Chinese government had committed genocide in Xinjiang by imposing population controls on minority Muslim Uighurs.
The Chinese government rejected the report, accusing it of an “anti-China” bias.
ASEAN ministers took part in talks with the G7 for the first time, with grave concerns about security in the South China Sea.
Truss said she and her counterparts were concerned about China’s “coercive economic policies,” and there was a need to counter them with their own initiatives as an alternative.
“What we want to do is build the investment reach, the economic trade reach of like-minded freedom-loving democracies,” she said. “That is why we’re stepping up our investment into low and middle-income countries.”
In Taipei, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday welcomed the G7 ministers’ joint communique and thanked them for attaching importance to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, while warning against Beijing’s “coercive economic policies.”
The ministry issued the statement after the G7 communique released after Sunday’s meeting doubled down on remarks the ministers had made in May and June on the importance of safeguarding peace and stability across the Strait.
Taiwan would continue to work with G7 members and like-minded nations in support of democratic developments and peace in the Indo-Pacific region, it added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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