G7 summit
Photo: EPA
G7 summit—strong on anti-terrorism, weak on climate change
While world leaders in the G7 summit agree to turn up pressure on internet firms to remove extremist content in an effort to stop the spread of “hateful ideology,” Trump remained in disharmony with the rest over climate change; White House official: although Trump's views on climate change are 'evolving,' he will not make a decision until after his return to Washington
Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies on Friday put pressure on internet companies and social media sites to do more to stop the spread of “hateful ideology,” appealing to their sense of social responsibility to more swiftly identify and remove terror propaganda.
The measure signed by the seven nations’ leaders was a show of solidarity with Britain following Monday’s suicide bombing in Manchester, England that killed 22 outside a pop music concert. The Islamic State group claimed the attack, although authorities are working to establish the bombing suspect’s ties to extremist organizations.
Photo: EPA
G7 summit (Credit: Reuters) (צילום: רויטרס)
British Prime Minister Theresa May said the leaders agreed that the threat posed by the Islamic State group “is evolving rather than disappearing.”
“As they lose ground in Iraq and Syria, foreign fighters are returning, and the group’s hateful ideology is spreading online,” May said. “Make no mistake, the fight is moving from the battlefield to the internet.”
She said terror propaganda is “warping young minds” and that she thinks technology companies both could do more and have the responsibility to act.
Theresa May and Trump (Photo: AFP)
In their declaration, the leaders said they were targeting “propaganda supporting terrorism and violent extremism, online recruitment by extremists, radicalization and incitement to violence.” They said they would work also with youth and religious leaders, prisons and educational institutions toward that end.
They also agreed in the declaration to strengthen the process for returning foreign fighters operating in Europe to their countries of origin, to better share intelligence on individuals who have trained in Islamic State territory, and to do more to cut off funding streams they called “the lifeblood of violent extremists and terrorists.”
World leaders urge Trump to change stance on climate change
At the close of the day’s talks, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said six of the G7 nations—Italy, Britain, France, Germany, Canada and Japan—confirmed “our commitment and our determination” to the Paris Agreement establishing goals for reducing greenhouse gases.The United States, meanwhile, confirmed “a period of reflection” on the issue, he said.
Photo: EPA
Trump’s pending review of US climate policies and decision not to make up his mind before the Taormina summit has braced environmentalists for the possibility of bland language that says little after years of increasingly stronger commitments to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and emissions under the Paris Agreement.
“What we do not want to see is a false compromise on nothing,” Tobias Muenchmeyer, a political expert for Greenpeace, said. “We want to see determination and commitment over unity,” with the other partners going ahead without the United States.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the G7 leaders “put forward very many arguments” for the US sticking with the agreement. And by Friday evening, White House economic adviser Gary Cohn said Trump’s views were indeed “evolving.”
Angela Merkel and Trump (Photo: EPA)
“He feels much more knowledgeable on the topic today,” Cohn said. “He came here to learn, he came here to get smarter.”
While those comments were remarkable given Trump’s fierce criticism of the Paris deal as a candidate, they were also in keeping with his emerging pattern as president. A novice in international affairs, Trump has been surprisingly candid about the impact his conversations with world leaders have had in shaping his views on numerous issues.
He backed away from his tough campaign talk about trade with China after a summit with President Xi Jinping. And he abandoned his criticism of Saudi Arabia’s human rights record following his warm welcome in the desert kingdom this week.
On Friday, G7 leaders appeared to take a page out of the playbook other countries have followed, emphasizing America’s unrivaled influence on the world stage. Cohn told reporters that Trump was struck by “how important it is for the United States to show leadership” and how even in massive international agreements, there’s “a big gap when you take the biggest economy out.”
Jean-Marc Ayrault and Rex Tillerson (Photo: AFP)
White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster quickly jumped in to assert that Trump would make his decisions based “on what’s best for the American people,” hewing to the “America First” policy that energized the president’s supporters during last year’s election campaign.
Nearly 200 countries are part of the Paris accord, and each sets its own emissions targets, which are not legally binding. The US has pledged to reduce its annual greenhouse gas emissions in 2025 by 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels, which would be a reduction of about 1.6 billion tons of annual emissions.
The Trump administration has argued that the US standards are tougher than those set by China, India and others, and therefore have put American businesses at a disadvantage.
Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe and his wife, Akie (Photo: EPA)
President of France Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte (Photo: AFP)
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau (Photo: AFP)
The gap between Trump and other G7 leaders on climate underscored his isolation from Europe on some major issues. The other G7 nations—Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan—were weighing whether to issue a statement at the close of the summit reiterating their support for the Paris accord, even if the United States was not included.
The White House’s slow decision-making on the issue led to the European leaders’ persuasion campaign. Multiple White House meetings on the matter were delayed in recent weeks, and Trump advisers ultimately said he would not make a decision until after he returns to Washington this weekend.
