The G7 and multilateralism in times of aggression: Maintaining and strengthening cooperative and inclusive approaches for the global common good

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Beisheim, Marianne / Axel Berger / Lars Brozus / Adolf Kloke-Lesch / Ronja Scheler / Silke Weinlich
External Publications (2022)

in: T7 Task Force International cooperation for the global common good (March 2022)

President Putin’s aggression against Ukraine is, in the first place, a disaster for the people of Ukraine. At the same time, it is an attack on peace and security, international law, and a cooperative world order. Russia’s war in many ways also jeopardizes the efforts to maintain and strengthen other global public goods and to address humanity’s common and collective challenges, which have been growing over the past years with a steep rise during the ongoing pandemic. It will also affect international forums that are needed to facilitate cooperative action. Other concerns and the concerns of others are in danger of being massively overshadowed – to the detriment of global solidarity in times of aggression. Preventing this is a core task of the G7 in 2022. The G7 under the German Presidency should position itself in a way that responds to Russia’s aggression without throwing its medium- and long-term priority agenda overboard as the addressed challenges remain equally pressing. While the summit and the ministers’ meetings will very likely show a strong focus on the response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the G7 should overall stick to the five priority areas rolled out by the German Presidency – sustainable planet, economic stability and transformation, healthy lives, investment in a better future and stronger together. It should at the same time supplement, adapt, and link them to the evolving situation and necessities, including by supporting measures that address the negative economic and social impacts of the war and the sanctions on third countries. When implementing its policy initiatives, we recommend that the G7 takes an extra effort and invests its political and economic clout in intensified international cooperation for the global common good. The G7 should do so by linking up its activities with other partners, by bolstering inclusive global governance institutions, and through tethering plurilateral and multi-stakeholder formats to a strengthened United Nations and other multilateral organisations.

The G7 and multilateralism in times of aggression: Maintaining and strengthening cooperative and inclusive approaches for the global common good

About the authors

Berger, Axel

Weinlich, Silke

Kloke-Lesch, Adolf

Further experts

Baydag, Melis

Bergmann, Julian

Dang, Vy

Erforth, Benedikt

Fiedler, Charlotte

Friesen, Ina

Furness, Mark

Grimm, Sven

Gutheil, Lena

Hackenesch, Christine

Keijzer, Niels

Koch, Svea

Leininger, Julia

Li, Hangwei

Lorch, Jasmin

Löpelt, Sarah

Mross, Karina

von Haaren, Paula

Wingens, Christopher

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