US, other G7 countries to acknowledge challenges posed by China

President Biden and U.S. allies will release a collective statement on Tuesday acknowledging challenges posed by China on workers, companies and national security, the White House announced at the Group of Seven (G7) Summit.

The statement from countries representing more than 50 percent of the world economy is focused on strengthening cooperation on economic issues, cyberspace and quantum computing as well as the harms caused by China’s non-transparent, market-distorting industrial directives.

A senior Biden administration official on Tuesday called the release “unprecedented in the context of the G7.”

“The leaders will commit to working together to develop a coordinated approach to remedy China’s non-market practices to help ensure a level playing field for businesses and workers,” the official said.

The statement includes efforts to elevate supply chain resilience, with commitments to intensify development of critical minerals supply chains and establish a strategy that takes into account processing, refining and recycling.

G7 nations will also cooperate on cyber and quantum technology, advance trade and technology standards, and improve the framework for debt restricting by addressing China’s role in low- and middle-income countries falling into debt traps.

Additionally, leaders will commit to tackling forced labor, including state-sponsored forced labor reported in Xinjiang, and reaffirm the importance of democratic resilience.

The final G7 communiqué was released at the end of the summit in Germany. Biden then left Germany for Spain, where he will attend a NATO meeting.

“A consistent theme that will carry over from the G-7 to NATO is our commitment not just to the transatlantic alliance but also to our focus on the Indo-Pacific,” a Biden administration official said.