Peacebuilding and Social Development!

To: Media Relations Office, Global Affairs Canada 

Reply of Just Peace Committee to the Joint Statement of the G7 Foreign Ministers published on March 14, 2025

PEACEBUILDING AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOR THE PEOPLE!

Upon studying the Joint Statement of the G7 Foreign Ministers of March 2025, Just Peace Committee is stunned by the foreign ministers neglect of people’s needs and commitment to warmaking. We object because it ought to address climate change and renewable energy, economic security for the poor and sustainable economic development, women’s security, and peacebuilding through de-escalation, negotiations and demilitarization.

The Foreign Ministers’ Joint Statement is dishonest, arrogant and belligerent, particularly in its positions on the Ukraine War, Haiti, the Middle East, China, Venezuela and North Korea. You talk about peaceful intentions and efforts when you have been engaged in military interventions and provocations. You talk about the G7 as a factor for peace when it is clearly a factor for war.

Ukraine

You say you want prosperity, security and independence for Ukraine, yet you as NATO members and allies have interfered, stirred up conflict and played a large part in the destruction of Ukraine. Led by the US, you backed a coup against a Russia friendly president to install one who was not, encouraging fascist entities along the way. You did nothing about the attacks and exclusionary policies against ethnic Russians that went on for many years. You pushed NATO forces to encircle Russia, endangering its security and provoking it, after several warnings, to attack Ukraine. When there have been opportunities to negotiate peace before, you prevented a resolution and kept funding and supplying Ukraine against ethnic Russians and Russian intervention forces. Even now as the US and Russia are arranging a ceasefire to eastern Ukraine, the UK, Germany and Canada want to keep militarizing Ukraine. Hundreds of thousands of people have perished and around two million have fled in the three years of war. Today, as a ceasefire is being discussed between the US and Russia, you expect the dominant force, Russia, to give concessions.

West Asia (“middle east”)

We oppose the state of Israel’s merciless assault on civilians in Gaza over the past 18 months, which has killed 10’s of thousands of children and defenseless elders, women, infants and hospital staff as well as journalist and aid workers. Self-defense in response to the Palestinian resistance’s assault on Israel on October 7, 2023, was justified. Their continued cry of self-defence is false, however, because of their vicious and blanket assaults on civilians. We call for the release of all captives. We thoroughly condemn, however, the daily mass slaughter since then. We contest Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, as you should. We thoroughly condemn the US and its allies supplying arms and funds to the Israeli government; without this massive support, the genocidal campaign could not have been waged for long. The US and Canada should remove their forces from the area (Canada’s Operation Proteus). You are complicit. There is no negotiating such terrible crimes. The US and allies among you simply could have stopped assisting the slaughter if you had wanted to end it.

We express our support for the people of Syria and Lebanon, as both countries work towards peaceful and stable political futures. At this critical juncture, we reiterated the importance of Syria’s and Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. We call unequivocally for the rejection of terrorism in Syria. Israeli and Turkish forces should leave Syria. Stop supporting these actors in Syria! We condemn strongly the recent escalation of violence in the coastal regions of Syria and call for the protection of civilians and for perpetrators of atrocities to be held accountable. We stressed the critical importance of an inclusive and Syrian-led political process. We welcome efforts to eliminate chemical weapons. As for Iran, the belligerence and provocations must end. Foreign meddling, espionage and assistance to criminal and anti-government elements in other countries must stop.

We are aware that most of the G7 states possess nuclear weapons and nuclear weapons capable equipment, which makes you all great security threats. All parties should withdraw and dismantle their nuclear weapons. You and all states should sign the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Venezuela

You took part in attempts to stage coups in 2002 and 2019. The US illegally took control over Venezuela’s state petroleum enterprise, CITCO. You refused to recognize the elected leadership and presented an imposter, Juan Guaidó, whom you allowed to steal Venezuelan wealth. Canada led a hostile contingent they called the Lima Group. You spread lies. Rather than trying to support a democratic process and help the Venezuelan people, you are trying to destabilize the country and your sanctions are causing great hardship.

Haiti

The US, France and Canada have been actively meddling in Haiti, propping up unelected and anti-people leaders and training armed forces, some of whom are criminals, to suppress the people’s just movement for democracy (free and fair elections) and socio-economic development in the name of fighting gangs.

The G7 statement to “restore democracy, security and stability” in Haiti is beyond disingenuous and outrageous. It was the US, Canada and France that overthrew the democratically elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in Haiti in 2004 that has led to the political crisis and gang violence in Haiti today where there are no elected officials in the country. There has been no accountability on our countries for causing this regime change and ensuing immense suffering to the people of Haiti over the past twenty years.

China

The G7 foreign ministers’ statement demonizes China, which has not started any wars in 40 years and has the Belt and Road program that developing countries are signing onto in the desperate hope of development something that the G7 countries have denied them by blocking the New International Economic Order for fifty years. China is seen as a trust partner in development and has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty in the country, for it is helping many countries with infrastructure and building high speed rail, public transit systems, health clinics, universities, etc. China is the world leader on renewable energy technologies. While China has repeatedly called for win-win solutions, it is the G7 countries that are militarizing the Indo-Pacific and constantly provoking China by sailing our warships right on their coast and arming Taiwan! Imagine if China were arming Quebec to violently separate from Canada. It is the G7 that is expressly militarizing the Indo-Pacific with the aggressive U.S. and Canadian Indo-Pacific strategies, AUKUS, NATO partners in Asia, more US bases in the region etc. It is the US that has repeatedly called China a threat and an enemy.

North Korea

At the same time, the G7 countries and their partners have been encircling North Korea and constantly conducting war maneuvers, even mock invasions. You keep the region destabilized and pose a threat with your high degree of militarization and anti-North Korea propaganda, rather than promoting peace on the peninsula and working towards a peace treat between North Korea and the US. North Korea is no threat; it has to maintain military defense because of your threats. You should contribute to demilitarizing the region.

Africa

As for Africa, the US and NATO must shut down AFRICOM and stop the interference in African countries to put and keep favoured political figures in power and have access to African assets. The US and NATO presence does not help or defend the African people.

The Canada-Wide Peace and Justice Network, a collection of some 50 groups interested in just peace across Canada, rejects the Joint Statement of the G7 Foreign Ministers. It fosters militarization while posturing as pro-peace. It denies your own responsibility for destabilization, war and global insecurity. It is self-centered and alien to international law. It completely disregards the peoples’ needs. In fact, it ignores the destruction to societies for which you are in large part responsible. We, like so many others in Canada, do not want to continue on the same path. We want de-escalation and de-militarization, increased social spending, a ban on nuclear weapons and peaceful global relations for mutual gain without ideological imperatives. We want negotiated resolutions with local people involvement that help the affected people. You must begin peacebuilding and serving socio-economic development, not military development.

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