The G-7 focuses on strengthening banks and supply chains

2023-05-13 08:30:46, Kosova & Bota CNA

Banking problems, cyber security and supply chain reliability were among the items on the agenda of Friday's closed-door talks in Japan by the group of seven of the world's most advanced economies.

Tensions with China and Russia's aggression in Ukraine occupy a wide space in the range of issues that the G-7 is dealing with this year at the meeting taking place in Japan, its only Asian member.

But as G-7 finance ministers and central bank chiefs discussed ways to protect the international rules-based order and prevent what they called "economic coercion" by China, Beijing hit back, accused the G-7 of hypocrisy.

China is a victim of economic coercion, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Friday.

"If any country should be criticized for economic austerity, it should be the USA. The United States has overstepped the concept of national security, abusing export controls and taking discriminatory and unfair measures against foreign companies," spokesman Wang said at a press conference.

China accuses Washington of hindering its growth as an increasingly wealthy and modern country through restrictions on trade and investment that the United States says are necessary to protect American economic security.

Speaking before the start of the talks, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that such measures are aimed at national security.

"They do not have the objective of undermining China's economic competitiveness or preventing them from advancing economically," Ms. Yellen said.

Ms Yellen cited Beijing's trade actions against Australia as an example of economic coercion by China.

"There have been examples of economic coercion by China of countries taking actions that Beijing is not happy with from a geopolitical perspective. The G-7 countries share a common concern about this type of activity and we are trying to see what we can do to combat this type of behavior," Ms. Yellen said.

China's relations with the European Union, which is also a member of the G-7, have been strained as a result of friction over trade and Beijing's tacit support for Russia.

Participants in the meeting in Niigata said they will consider ways to prevent countries from evading sanctions against Moscow aimed at hampering its ability to continue the war in Ukraine./ VOA