G7 2021: Joe Biden urges the West to get tough on China
Joe Biden has called on democratic western nations to collectively get tough on China and other “autocratic governments around the world” in order to win a grand battle of ideologies.
The US President used much of his G7 summit press conference to call out China’s human rights abuses, unfair trading practices and increasingly aggressive foreign policy manoeuvres.
Biden indicated that his tough stance on China helped convince the other G7 leaders to include a number of rebukes to the country’s government in the final communique.
“Last time the G7 met there was no mention of China, but this time there is,” he said.
“I think we’re in a contest, not with China per se, but a contest with autocrats, autocratic governments around the world as to whether or not democracies can compete with them in a rapidly changing 21st century.
“Whether we pull together as democracies determined, whether our grandkids look back and ask ‘did they step up, are democracies as relevant and powerful as they have been’.”
Combatting China’s growing global dominance was a key theme throughout the G7 summit in Cornwall, with the final communique referencing the country four times.
The joint statement, signed by the G7 leaders, called out China’s ethnic cleansing campaign of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, urged the Chinese government to co-operate into investigations into the origins of Covid-19 and also committed to “challenging” the country’s unfair economic and trade policies.
The communique also highlighted its concern about China’s increasing attempts to expand in the South China Sea, which is creating tensions with other Asian nations.
One of the key announcements of the summit was a joint new green infrastructure plan for developing nations, which is set to challenge China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative has seen the country spend trillions on infrastructure in more than 100 countries across the globe in an attempt to build a new interconnected silk road.
Beijing has widely been accused of using the scheme to grow its global economic influence and of holding countries to ransom over investments made.
The new Build Back Better for the World programme will see the globe’s richest democracies provide “high quality financing for vital infrastructure” in places like Africa and Asia.
Details on how the fund will be distributed or how much each G7 country will donate has not yet been decided.
Biden said the plan would “help meet the more than $40 trillion needed” to build vital infrastructure in the developing world, while also acting as a bulwark against China.
“What’s happening is that China has its Belt and Road and we think there’s a much more equitable way to provide for needs of countries across the world,” he said.
“It will be a values driven, high standard, transparent financing mechanism we’re going to provide and support in the project is four key areas – climate, health, technology and gender equity.
“We believe that will not only be good for those countries, but good for the entire world to represent values our democracies represent and not autocratic lack of value.”
Boris Johnson said in his final G7 press conference that “we need to build our credibility with those [developing] countries in asking them to make cuts with Co2”.
“This country, which started the industrial revolution, is responsible for a huge budget of carbon already in the atmosphere,” he said.
“We’re now asking for other countries to make a change.”