G7 reassures Ukraine on NATO bid, worried about UN threat in Lebanon By Reuters
by Angelo Amante
NAPLES, Italy (Reuters) – Defense ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) rich democracies on Saturday backed Ukraine's “irreversible” approach to NATO membership and expressed concern over threats against United Nations troops against Israel in Lebanon.
The first-ever meeting of G7 defense ministers came as Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah exchanged fire, with one missile targeting the home of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to his spokesman.
Italy holds the presidency of the G7 in 2024 and the West also faces Russia's advances in Ukraine and China's military activities around Taiwan, as well as tensions on the border between North and South Korea.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, who chaired the meeting in the southern city of Naples, told reporters that the G7 cannot solve the world's tensions alone, but needs to encourage action by the entire international community.
“The G7 must be like a fly that has the power to bite the whole world,” he said at a press conference.
Along with Italy, the G7 includes the United States, Canada, France, Germany and Britain. Representatives of NATO, the European Union and Ukrainian defense minister Rustem Umerov also joined the talks.
In his previous speech to open the meeting, Crosetto warned of a “collapsing security framework” around the world and said that the near-term forecasts for conflict resolution “cannot be good”.
The tension is fueled by a clash between “two different, perhaps incompatible worldviews,” he said.
In its final statement, the G7 supported “Kyiv's irreversible approach to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership”.
This week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy laid out his “plan for victory” in the EU and NATO but failed to receive the immediate membership invitation he was calling for.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said he is concerned about North Korea's contribution to Russia's war effort.
“(It makes it) clear that this dispute has spread to other regions of the world in terms of its accessibility,” he said, as the G7 also expressed concern over China's support for military exercises in Moscow and Beijing recently in Taiwan.
Ceasefire calls
Before the meeting, Crosetto welcomed photographers holding a model of a thin red animal horn, a symbol of good luck in the long-revered Neapolitan tradition.
The Aerobatics Team of the Italian Air Force flew over the Royal Palace of Naples which was the venue for the ceremony, leaving behind a trail of smoke in the red, white and green colors of the national flag in the cloudy sky.
Several hundred protesters gathered in the rain, marching through the city center carrying Palestinian flags and calling for an immediate end to the war in Gaza. Some minor clashes with the police were reported.
The G7 joint declaration called for an immediate end to fighting in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages still held by Hamas, saying the attacks and retaliation risked “fueling an uncontrolled escalation in the Middle East”.
EU chief Josep Borrell said Thursday's killing of former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar could increase the chances of an end to the conflict in Gaza, eventually allowing more support for the war-torn population.
He said that the UN team in Lebanon, known as UNIFIL, which has recently been referred to Israel in its conflict with Hezbollah, can be successfully implemented but it will be up to the UN Security Council to decide on its future.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he would like Israel to postpone some of its strikes on Beirut and added that Israel told him it had no intention of targeting UNIFIL in Lebanon.
Italy plays a major role in UNIFIL based in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the separation line with Israel. The Israeli attack angered Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who visited Lebanon and Jordan on Friday.
