G-7 community
The global community is facing enormous challenges. To master them upholding shared values and taking on responsibility at the international level is necessary. This is precisely the claim of the G7.
Combating international terrorism and its causes requires decisive action and a long-term strategy. It takes the same approach to protect our natural environment, tackle epidemics, and introduce the necessary regulation of the international financial markets. The situation in Ukraine, too, demands steady, consistent action by the G7 partners.
At our meeting in Elmau, under the motto “Think Ahead. Act Together.”, we faced these challenges. As a community founded on shared responsibility, we wanted to find concrete solutions to make the lives of people all over the world better and safer.
In this respect 2015 has been a decisive year for global cooperation. With the 2030 Agenda, the international community adopted 17 concrete goals for global sustainable development and thereby it has set nothing less than new benchmarks for the cooperation of mankind. At the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in December in Paris, all states agreed on a new, ambitious, fair and binding climate agreement.
For this purpose the G7 Summit provided a strong momentum. Elmau delivered clear commitments and guidance, whether in relation to the decarbonisation of the global economy or against littering the world’s oceans or in relation to strengthening healthcare systems, to combating hunger and malnutrition and promoting women’s entrepreneurship and ec onomic empowerment. With the aim of enhancing the economic
perspectives for all people, the G7 intends to shape a sustainable world economy – e. g. through increased resource efficiency and improved implementation of social and ecological standards in supply chains.
Numerous decisions made in Elmau have been set in motion. We will continue to pursue the implementation of our agenda with firm resolve, whether within governments and civil society, the G7 itself, in the G20, in the EU or the United Nations. Because global challenges require global answers.
Angela Merkel, Chancellor
1- The G7 is a community founded on shared responsibility and common values such as freedom, democracy and human rights. Our actions are guided by the principles of the rule of law, including strengthening international law and upholding territorial integrity.
2- The G7 is committed to a values and rules-based economic system and to shaping globalisation in keeping with our shared values. The aim is to sustainably strengthen growth and employment through structural reform. In addition, the G7 seeks to implement further reform of the financial markets and to continue to expand cooperation on tax matters. We will strive to boost women’s entrepreneurship.
3- Growth and employment need free trade, worldwide. With this in mind, we aim to strengthen the World Trade Organization and its multilateral trading system. Bilateral and regional free trade agreements are able to support this trading system and can act as building blocks for future multilateral agreements.
4- The G7 will strive for sustainable global supply chains and for better application of labour, social and environmental standards in producer countries.
5- The G7 condemns the illegal annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. In view of the ongoing destabilisation of Eastern Ukraine, it will continue to work towards a political solution based on the agreements reached in Minsk. At the same time, the G7 encourages the Ukrainian government to continue its process of reform.
6- The G7 intends to strengthen and coordinate more effectively its joint efforts to combat terrorism.
7- Deep cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions are required in order to hold the increase in global average temperature below 2 °C. This will require a decarbonisation of the global economy over the course of this century. The G7 is striving for a trans formation of the energy sector by 2050 and is committed to improving the protection of the marine environment, as well as to resource efficiency.
8- The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted at the UN Summit in September 2015 aims to end extreme poverty by 2030 and achieve sustainable develop ment. As part of a broad effort involving our partner countries and international actors, the G7 aims to lift 500 million people in developing countries out of hunger and malnutrition by 2030 and to increase the number of women and girls technically and vocationally educated and trained in developing countries by one third by 2030.
9- The G7 wants to tackle future outbreaks of epidemics such as Ebola more quickly and more effectively. To this end, the G7 will strengthen the necessary instruments and structures and, over the next five years, offer to assist 60 countries to implement the World Health Organization’s International Health Regulations. The G7 supports the One Health approach to combating antimicrobial resistance and aims to coordinate research activities in the field of neglected tropical diseases more effectively [ G-7 Report 2015]
