Trudeau heads to Italy for G7 summit to discuss global conflicts, energy transition, and AI; Ukraine Peace Summit follows.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to travel to Italy on Wednesday to participate in the annual G7 leaders’ summit. The three-day event, beginning on Thursday in Apulia, Italy, will see leaders from the world’s seven wealthiest democracies addressing critical issues, including the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas wars, the energy transition, artificial intelligence, migration, and African collaboration.
Following the G7 summit, Trudeau will attend the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland on Saturday and Sunday before returning to Ottawa.
“This is an unprecedentedly large, interconnected, complex, and demanding agenda,” noted John Kirton, a political science professor and head of the G7 research group at the University of Toronto.
The G7, comprising Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, and Japan, gathers annually to align on global objectives. Roland Paris, an international affairs professor at the University of Ottawa and former senior adviser to Trudeau, emphasized the importance of this collaboration, particularly as many international institutions face paralysis due to internal divisions.
Canada’s priorities at the summit include the clean energy transition, combatting misinformation and foreign interference, and advancing artificial intelligence. In a preview publication co-edited by Kirton, Trudeau highlighted the clean energy transition as a “once-in-a-generation opportunity” for Canada and its G7 partners to lead.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, hosting the summit, aims to defend the “rules-based international system,” which has been destabilized by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. Italy’s G7 website states that the summit will equally address the Middle East conflict and its global repercussions.
Although no major announcements regarding the Israel-Hamas war are expected, Paris mentioned that unfolding events might prompt the G7 leaders to react. Last week, the G7 supported U.S. President Joe Biden’s peace plan, which includes an immediate ceasefire, the release of Israeli hostages by Hamas, and increased humanitarian aid for Gaza.
One of the summit’s most anticipated outcomes is the decision on using frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has proposed leveraging future interest income from these assets