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OSAKA, Oct 28 The G7 countries are not trying to build a new international economic order to exclude any countries from it, but want to expand cooperation with partners, said Yasutoshi Nishimura, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, during his opening speech at the opening of the event.
«During this meeting, I would like to demonstrate how the G7 countries can work together. At each of our meetings, I emphasize that we do not intend to build a new order to exclude any countries from it in order to ensure economic security, but we strive to interaction with reliable partners. This form of thinking has not changed,» he noted.
Nishimura emphasized that cooperation in the trade sphere is important not only within the G7, but also outside it, so this time for the first time the information Representatives from non-G7 countries and international organizations were invited to the session.
“During these two days, I would like to discuss a wide range of issues, including supply chains,” he added.
The meeting of G7 trade ministers, chaired by Japan, opened on Saturday afternoon in Osaka Prefecture. Over the course of two days, five sessions will be held, including in an extended format, during which participants will discuss strengthening supply chains, reforming the WTO dispute settlement system, economic security and other issues.
In addition to the usual participants, this year the discussion in an expanded format will also be joined by representatives of the trade departments of Australia, Chile, India, Indonesia, Kenya, as well as the Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the President of the Institute economic research for ASEAN and East Asia.
This time, the ministerial meeting will be co-chaired by Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, four thematic sessions and one outreach session are planned. The sessions “Trade and Sustainability (Environment, Development and Digital Technologies)” and “Conditions for Fair Competition” will be chaired by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa. The Minister of Commerce will chair the sessions «Open and Free Trade — Towards the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference» and «Economic Containment — Strengthening Supply Chains».