G7 adopts 'common set of tools' to counter China's economic power

The G7 will agree on a "common set of tools" to combat economic "coercion" and limit the risk that high-tech exports to China undermine national security, a top US official said.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters on Saturday at the G7 summit in Hiroshima that the measures will focus on more resilient supply chains for G7 countries, which currently rely heavily on China in some sectors.

The agreement will also include "steps to protect sensitive technology, like export controls and outbound investment measures", he added.

Sullivan said that past differences between the United States and the European Union countries on how to deal with China have largely faded.

The common strategy will emphasise the need to protect Western powers while avoiding outright confrontation with China, he said.

'Intensive' diplomacy

"G7 leaders will also come out today with a statement on our shared approach, our aligned approach when it comes to the People's Republic of China," he said.

"You will find the China language to be totally straightforward. It is not hostile or gratuitous. It is just direct and candid and there are key elements right from the top of that language that speaks to the desire for stable relations with China and the desire to work together on issues of mutual interest," Sullivan said.

"It also spells out our concerns, but those concerns are well known to China. So there should be nothing about it from the point of view of a surprise."

Sullivan said "intensive" diplomacy since US President Joe Biden took office in January 2021 has resulted in G7 "alignment" on the issue.

"The last two and a half years I think that has resulted in a convergence that we did not see several years ago on the key issues. But it is not a cartoonish or one-dimensional policy. It is a multi-dimensional, complex policy for a complex relationship with a really important country," he said.