THE Group of Seven (G7) on Sunday wrapped up its first in-person summit in almost two years against the backdrop of protesters taking to the streets and beaches and accusing the world’s richest countries of making “empty promises.”

Critics said the three-day gathering, held in Britain’s southwestern resort of Carbis Bay in Cornwall, is a “historic missed opportunity” as it only threw up more questions than answers to some of the world’s thorniest issues.

In a joint communique issued after the summit, the G7 leaders belatedly pledged to provide 1 billion doses of coronavirus vaccine to the less developed countries over the next year.

While the gesture is seen as a step in the right direction, campaigners and critics feel it lacks ambition and is far too slow as it was not enough to cover the needs of these countries.

The World Health Organization estimates that at least 11 billion doses are needed to stand a chance of beating the COVID-19. Countries like Britain, Canada and the United States have ordered enough doses of vaccines to immunize their entire populations multiple times.

The leaders also agreed to take measures to speed up economic recovery after the pandemic by investing in infrastructure and driving innovation, and to secure future prosperity by championing freer and fairer trade.

On climate change, the G7 leaders agreed to adopt strict measures on coal-fired power stations and reaffirmed to raise US$100 billion a year to help the less developed countries cut emissions.

Unsurprisingly, on China, the communique did not fail to mention issues such as Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Taiwan and East and South China Seas, in the name of “upholding the rules-based international system and international law,” despite pledging to cooperate with China to tackle “shared global challenges” like climate change and biodiversity loss.

In an earlier statement, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Britain said: “The days when global decisions were dictated by a small group of countries are long gone. There is only one system and one order in the world, that is, the international system with the United Nations at the core and the international order based on international law, not the so-called system and order advocated by a handful of countries.”

During the summit, the G7 leaders also adopted the U.S.-backed Build Back Better World (B3W) plan to support lower- and middle-income countries in building better infrastructure, which is deemed by many as an attempt to rival the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

In an earlier report, the London-based Financial Times stated that on his first overseas visit, U.S. President Joe Biden may try to “coax a wary Europe to work more closely with Washington on China,” among his priorities.

Martin Jacques, a senior fellow at Cambridge University, said it’s no surprising that the “greatly diminished” G7 took a very negative view about China, “because it’s only defensive and it’s kind of embattled.”

The G7 would be making a “mistake” if they seek to exclude or contain China in the face of global challenges, he told Xinhua. “I think it’s a mistake for the G7 to do what they did. They should be seeking ways of developing cooperation with China, not thinking to contain or rebuff China.”

(Xinhua)