For two days, the G7 foreign ministers, meeting in Fiuggi, near Rome, will discuss the situation in the Middle East, common support for Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific region. Other topics include Africa, Haiti and Venezuela. It is no coincidence that meetings within the framework of the G7 are held away from capitals. Here, foreign ministers have two days to discuss the main security and geopolitical challenges in a peaceful and confidential framework.

Alongside Ukraine, we are unwavering

More than 1,000 days after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the G7 remains steadfast with the Ukrainian people. The foreign ministers will discuss with their Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha how the G7 crisis team can continue to support Ukraine, particularly during the third winter of the war. The G7 raised $50 billion in financial aid for Ukraine, which will be available early next year. Within the framework of the G7, we must now cooperate even more closely as countries such as Iran, North Korea and China increasingly support Russia’s war against Ukraine. This concerns the deployment of North Korean soldiers but also the military equipment made available to Russia.

Situation in the Middle East

The spiral of violence triggered in the Middle East with the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023 must be stopped. Hamas must release the hostages it still holds captive. We are working for a ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon. The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is dire. That is why we are doing everything in our power to ensure that more aid reaches the suffering population. Foreign ministers will also discuss what we can do as part of the G7 to end the suffering and find a way out of the conflict in the Middle East, with their counterparts from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and the Secretary General of the Arab League, who were also invited to Fiuggi on Monday.

More cooperation and connectivity in the Indo-Pacific region

As part of the G7, we work to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region and the international law of the sea, because freedom of navigation is essential to free trade. Moreover, Europe’s security is closely linked to security in the Indo-Pacific region. This is why we continue to expand our cooperation and partnerships to reduce dependencies as well as diversify and secure our supply chains. The discussions in Fiuggi with the foreign ministers of India, Indonesia, South Korea and the Philippines will therefore focus in particular on cooperation through trade agreements, cooperation in the field of raw materials and rare earths and within the framework of the EU Global Gateway Infrastructure Initiative.