Group of Seven
The German G7 Presidency is now due to end – Japan will be the next to take over the baton on 1 January 2023. Germany’s year-long G7 Presidency came at a time of global crises. Together, the G7 has been resolute in addressing these crises and achieving progress towards an equitable world.
The year of the German G7 Presidency year was marked by the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. The wide-ranging global consequences of this war, in particular its impact on global food and energy security, were among the issues addressed by the G7. It is determined to support Ukraine for as long as necessary.
At the same time, the G7 focused on the motto of the German G7 Presidency – “Progress towards an equitable world” – as well as championing long-term concerns such as environmental and climate protection, economic stability and transformation, strengthening global health and investment worldwide, and supporting democracies and the rules-based international order.
Unprecedented: six meetings in twelve months
The G7 leaders met a total of six times under the German Presidency, with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in virtual attendance on five occasions. “This figure alone demonstrates how closely we have coordinated our efforts this year with partners who share our values,” said Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz. In addition, numerous G7 meetings took place at ministerial level in the various specialist areas. This unprecedented level of coordination has paid off, as the key results of this presidency show:
- The G7 stands firmly by Ukraine’s side – and will do so for as long as necessary. Among other things, the German Presidency coordinated short-term direct budget support from the G7 totalling some 32.7 billion US dollars in 2022. Together with the European Commission, Germany hosted an International Expert Conference on the Reconstruction of Ukraine in Berlin. Subsequently, the G7 decided to establish a governance platform to coordinate Ukrainian reconstruction internationally.
- The G7 imposed far-reaching sanctions against Russia.
- The G7 established an open and cooperative international Climate Club and drew up the relevant terms of reference. In addition, the G7 adopted a global shield against climate risks together with the Vulnerable 20.
- At the G7 Summit, the G7 launched the Alliance for Global Food Security and mobilised an additional 4.5 billion US dollars to combat the global hunger crisis.
- Together with the G7 Summit partner countries, the G7 demonstrated its commitment to defending democratic principles, human rights and resilient democratic societies, also stating that it will join forces to tackle global challenges.
The highlight of the 2022 G7 Presidency was the summit meeting of G7 leaders. It took place in June at Schloss Elmau in the Bavarian Alps. Argentina, India, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa were invited to attend the G7 Summit as partner countries.
Germany made the most of its presidency
“We will make the most of our G7 Presidency to ensure this group of states takes on a pioneering role – in pursuing climate-neutrality and an equitable world.” This was what Federal Chancellor Scholz said one year ago. Looking back, there is no question that Germany indeed made the most of its presidency, driving forward answers to the most pressing challenges in close alliance with its G7 partners.
At a time when the world is threatened by divisions and upheavals, the G7 has moved even closer together as a functioning community of shared values. This is something Scholz firmly believes to be true. “Democracy, the rule of law and human rights are the values that unite us as partners.” And these values carry more weight than ever before – in the fight for an equitable world, both within the G7 and far beyond it.
Throughout the course of the year, the German G7 Presidency also coordinated closely with the Indonesian G20 Presidency. Cooperation in the context of the G20 has been extremely difficult ever since the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine began in February 2022. After very intense negotiations, the final agreement on a joint communique at the G20 Summit in Bali on 15-16 November 2022 was a major achievement for multilateralism.
It was not least due to close coordination of the G7 with G20 partners that the vast majority of G20 members unambiguously condemned the Russian war of aggression, and that the G20 also stated unanimously that the threat or use of nuclear weapons was inadmissible. The close involvement of Argentina, India, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa as partner countries of the German G7 Presidency 2022 and their invitation to the G7 Summit in Elmau was a vital contributing factor to the G20 agreement.
The German G7 Presidency ends with the handover to Japan on 1 January 2023. As such, the official G7 website of the Federal Government will not be updated further. For new articles on the G7 and G20, see our dedicated topic page “International cooperation – G7/G20”.