One of the major questions surrounding the Group of Seven summit in the United Kingdom this weekend was how the countries' leaders would approach China in their final communique, especially following reports that President Biden was urging his allies to take a strong stand against its forced labor practices. The communique was unveiled Sunday, and it appears the cohort opted to send a message to Beijing on that front, just not explicitly. For his part, Biden said he's "satisfied" with the final result, even though it wasn't as strong as the U.S. had hoped, Bloomberg's Jennifer Jacobs and The Wall Street Journal's Vivian Salama report.
China received four direct mentions in the communique, including: a request for further investigation into the origins of COVID-19; an agreement to consult on China's "non-market ... practices which undermine the fair and transparent operation of the global economy"; an expression of concern regarding tensions in the South and East China Seas and the Taiwan Strait; and a call for Beijing "to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms" in Xinjiang, home to the country's Uighur Muslims and other ethnic minorities, as well as Hong Kong.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Week Unwrapped: Why are sinkholes becoming more common?Podcast Plus, will Saudi investment help create the "Netflix of sport"? And why has New Zealand's new tourism campaign met with a savage reception?
-
How Poland became Europe's military powerThe Explainer Warsaw has made its armed forces a priority as it looks to protect its borders and stay close to the US
-
Quiz of The Week: 15 - 21 FebruaryHave you been paying attention to The Week's news?
-
Trump seeks to end New York's congestion pricingSpeed Read The MTA quickly filed a lawsuit to stop the move
-
Trump officials try to reverse DOGE-led firingsSpeed Read Mass firings by Elon Musk's team have included employees working on the H5N1 bird flu epidemic and US nuclear weapons programs
-
Trump blames Ukraine for war after US-Russia talksSpeed Read The US and Russia have agreed to work together on ending the Ukraine war — but President Trump has flipped America's approach
-
Musk's DOGE seeks access to IRS, Social Security filesSpeed Read If cleared, the Department of Government Efficiency would have access to tax returns, bank records and other highly personal information about most Americans
-
Senate confirms RFK Jr. as health secretarySpeed Read The noted vaccine skeptic is now in charge of America's massive public health system
-
Trump lays out plans for broad 'reciprocal' tariffsSpeed Read Tariffs imposed on countries that are deemed to be treating the US unfairly could ignite a global trade war and worsen American inflation
-
Top US prosecutors resign rather than drop Adams casespeed read The interim US attorney for the Southern District and five senior Justice Department officials quit following an order to drop the charges against Mayor Eric Adams
-
Senate confirms Gabbard as intelligence chiefSpeed Read The controversial former Democratic lawmaker, now Trump loyalist, was sworn in as director of national intelligence
