G-7 Foreign ministers meet held in the historic town of Muenster , Germany

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The Group of 7 (G7) Foreign Minister’s meeting was held at the German town of Muenster on 4th and 5th November 2022. The historic Treaty of Westphalia was signed in 1648 in the city, which not only ended the 30 years’ war in Europe but also laid the foundation of the modern nation - state system.

German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock, hosted the foreign ministers of, United States, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Italy and Canada. Germany is currently the President of the G-7 group.

Germany invited Ghana, Kenya and the African Union to join the G7 meeting for discussions on climate change, infrastructure, democracy and addressing conflict and humanitarian crises.

At the end of the meeting the foreign ministers agreed to provide aid to Ukraine so that it can deal with the harsh winter climate. Around 30% of Ukraine’s electricity grid has been destroyed due to the Russian Invasion of the country since 24 February 2022.

They also urged China to abstain from issuing “threats, coercion, intimidation, or the use of force," in the Taiwan straits. The United States considers China as a serious rival and wants the G7 countries to take a tough stand against China’s policy on Taiwan and its trade policy.  

Interestingly the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was on a one day visit to China to meet the Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the day the G-7 foreign minister’s meeting started in Germany. He is the first G7 leader to visit China since the covid-19 pandemic. 

G-7 or Group of Seven countries

The G7 (Group of Seven) is an organisation of the world's seven largest advanced economies, which dominate global trade and the international financial system. 

• They are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• Russia joined in 1998, creating the G8, but was excluded in 2014 for its annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine.
•  It has no permanent secretariat.
• The 2021 summit meeting was held in  England 
• The 2022 summit meeting was held in Germany.
• The 2023 summit will be held in Japan .