The foreign ministers of the Group of Seven nations are set to wrap up a two-day meeting Monday with a push on North Korea to dismantle all weapons of mass destruction and missiles in a complete, verifiable and irreversible way.
In a joint statement to be issued after the gathering in Toronto, Canada, the ministers are expected to affirm that the G-7 will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea and to pledge to maintain maximum pressure and sanctions on Pyongyang until it denuclearizes.
They are likely to press North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to take concrete action toward denuclearization, as he plans to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae In on Friday and with U.S. President Donald Trump in May or early June to discuss the permanent denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
(KCNA/Kyodo)
Aside from North Korea, the top diplomats from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States plus the European Union discussed Middle Eastern issues such as the Syria crisis and the Iranian nuclear deal on the first day of talks.
Referring to China's militarization of outposts in disputed areas of the South China Sea and Beijing's attempts to undermine Japan's administration of the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, the G-7 ministers expressed their "strong opposition" to unilateral action that could force a shift in the status quo in the region, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.
(Senkaku Islands in southwestern Japan)
China has overlapping territorial claims with Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan in the South China Sea, a strategic waterway through which over one-third of global trade passes.
The G-7 ministers also agreed to step up cooperation in achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific region based on the rule of law, the ministry said.
On the second day of talks, the ministers are to exchange views on the development of Africa, cybersecurity, as well as conflict prevention and counter-terrorism, according to the Canadian government.
The Toronto session, presided over by Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, will lay the groundwork for a G-7 leaders' summit slated for June 8-9 in Charlevoix, Quebec.
