US and Japan seek to unite G7 against China. Should Beijing be worried?

Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima could be stress test for Beijing’s relations with the West, which have shown signs of a thaw in recent weeks

Tokyo and Washington push for tougher stance on China while European members shy from conflict

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G7 leaders are expected to issue a “harshly worded statement” on China, according to analysts. Photo: via Reuters

Published: 6:00am, 20 May 2023Updated: 7:04am, 20 May 2023

With leaders of the Group of Seven nations gathering in Hiroshima this weekend, Beijing is watching warily as Japan and the United States seek to smooth divisions and galvanise support for a broad international coalition against China and Russia.

This is by no means an easy task. While Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine has reinvigorated the G7 and united the West, how to deal with a rising China remains one of the most divisive issues for the US and its allies.

Consolidating support for Ukraine and strengthening sanctions against Russia will take centre stage at the three-day summit, which started on Friday, while Tokyo and Washington are pushing for a tougher stance on China.

Observers said that with Japan holding the G7 presidency, the Hiroshima summit was particularly important for the Indo-Pacific amid fears about an intensifying Cold War-style confrontation between two opposing camps led by the US and China.

The summit will be a test of the G7’s unity, as members – which also include Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the EU – are expected to seek consensus on a host of China-related issues, from Taiwan and supply chains to Beijing’s quasi-alliance with Moscow and its alleged economic coercion against other countries.

In a move some analysts said was aimed at Beijing, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida invited eight non-member countries to the summit in a bid to expand the US-led coalition’s influence among China’s Asian neighbours and developing countries.