Global Courant 2023-05-11 08:49:00
NIIGATA, Japan – Singapore’s Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will attend a meeting of finance leaders and central bank governors of the Group of Seven (G-7) bloc of wealthy industrialized democracies in Niigata, where the Republic has been invited as an observer.
The three-day meeting starting Thursday in the coastal city in central Japan is expected to focus on issues such as strengthening the global economy and supply chains in the wake of shocks such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and financial sector turmoil.
Singapore is not a member of the G-7 or the Forum of the Group of 20 (G-20) of major economies. While the Republic is regularly invited to attend G-20 meetings as an observer, this is a rare occasion for Singapore to attend the G-7.
Japan holds the presidency of the G-7 bloc this year, and the Niigata meeting will take place ahead of the Leaders’ Summit in Hiroshima from May 19-21. Singapore will not be represented at the Hiroshima Summit.
Singapore’s finance ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the Niigata meeting will “discuss ways to strengthen economic and financial cooperation between emerging markets and developed economies.”
Mr Wong will be accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Finance on his official visit.
The G-7 consists of Great Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. The European Union is a “non-listed member” that cannot organize or chair a summit.
Singapore is one of six observer countries invited to attend the Niigata meeting. The others are this year’s G-20 president India, ASEAN Indonesia president and African Union president, Comoros, as well as South Korea and Brazil.
Meanwhile, the countries invited to Hiroshima include Australia, Brazil, the Comoros, the Cook Islands (which is chairing this year’s Pacific Islands Forum), India, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam.
On the agenda of the Niigata meeting, which will be chaired by Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki and Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda, are issues such as sanctions against Russia and fears of US default.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will attend the Niigata session, with the deadlock over Washington’s debt limit threatening President Joe Biden’s personal presence at the Hiroshima summit.
The Niigata meeting is also likely to result in a proposal from the G-7 to work with the World Bank to build more resilient supply chains, the Nikkei newspaper reported Tuesday.
Their goal, the report said, was to help developing countries reduce their dependence on China for strategically important technologies related to clean energy and infrastructure.
