Group of Seven leaders will share the stage Friday with the leaders of India, Brazil, Turkey and other non-Western countries, showcasing a changing global landscape on the second day of their summit.
Among the thorny issues on the agenda: migration, which has helped fuel a recent resurgence of populism and far-right parties in Europe and the United States. The leaders will also discuss economic competition with China, security in the Indo-Pacific region and relations between the West and countries known collectively as the Global South, which largely includes Latin America, the Africa and much of the Middle East and Asia.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is hosting the meeting, said the aim of her expanded guest list was to “strengthen dialogue with the nations of the South”. She insisted that the Group of 7 was “not a fortress closed on itself”, but “an offer of values that we open to the world”.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also stressed the importance of strengthening relations with partners beyond the group, particularly with countries in the South, as the world faces challenges such as the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and the war between Israel and Hamas, which threatens to spread to Lebanon.
Much of the focus will be on leaders like Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a recognition that the West is less demographically and economically dominant in the world than in the past, and that he listens. calls for more fairness and balance in major decisions.
Topics will include economic security, Africa, the southern Mediterranean and the challenges posed by artificial intelligence.
How to control migration has worried the United States and Europe for years, made worse by the effects of climate change and wars in Afghanistan, the Middle East and Ukraine. This is a particularly sensitive issue for Ms Meloni, who has campaigned fiercely to combat what she called “uncontrolled immigration” to Italy and other parts of Europe from from Africa and the Middle East.
As Europe took in thousands of Ukrainians, especially women and children, fleeing the Russian invasion, Ukrainian officials urged their European counterparts to help repatriate combat-age men.
But a large part of the day will be devoted to individual meetings between the leaders, in particular with Pope Francis, invited by Ms. Meloni. After delivering his speech, Francis will meet with President Biden, Mr. Modi, Mr. Lula, President William Ruto of Kenya, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
Mr. Biden is expected to leave Italy in the afternoon, hours before the issuance of a final statement in the early evening. The other leaders will close the day with a concert and an informal dinner. On Saturday, there will be more bilateral meetings and closing press conferences of leaders.
