G7 seeks common line on Gaza, signal to Russia

G7 foreign ministers sought Wednesday to hammer out a common line on the Israel-Hamas war and signal to Russia that there would be no let-up in their support for Ukraine.

The ministers were expected to call in a joint statement for "humanitarian pauses" in Gaza, while stopping short of urging a ceasefire.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, arriving in Japan for the talks from his latest whirlwind Middle East tour, called Tuesday for the G7 to speak "in one clear voice" on the conflict.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamiwaka said late Tuesday that the G7 ministers "need to call on the relevant countries to take humanitarian pauses and ensure humanitarian access, which is a pre-condition for sufficient and continued humanitarian assistance".

A diplomatic source said after a working dinner the same day focusing on Gaza that there was "great unity that in view of the humanitarian emergency in Gaza, humanitarian care for the Palestinian civilian population needs to be urgently expanded".

The source added that there were "constructive exchanges" about humanitarian pauses, as well as the need for discussions among the G7 and other countries in the region about the future of Gaza, and on how to stop the conflict spreading.

- 'Overall security' -

The Israeli military has relentlessly bombarded Gaza since October 7, when Hamas militants launched an attack that left 1,400 dead in Israel, most of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities.

The Hamas-run health ministry says the death toll in Gaza has surpassed 10,300 people.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday there would be no fuel delivered to Gaza and no ceasefire unless the more than 240 Israeli hostages seized by Hamas were freed.

He also said Israel would assume "overall security" in Gaza after the war ends, while allowing for possible "tactical pauses" before then to free captives and deliver aid to the besieged territory of 2.4 million people.

However, Washington said Tuesday it opposed a new long-term occupation of Gaza by Israel.

"Our viewpoint is that Palestinians must be at the forefront of these decisions and Gaza is Palestinian land and it will remain Palestinian land," said State Department spokesman Vedant Patel.

"Generally speaking, we do not support the reoccupation of Gaza and neither does Israel."

- Ukraine fatigue -

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Tuesday that G7 unity was "needed more than ever", not only on Gaza, but also the "challenges in the Indo-Pacific region" and the situation in Ukraine.

With the war there now in its 20th month and Ukraine's counteroffensive struggling to gain ground, President Volodymyr Zelensky has regularly met Western leaders to try to stave off fatigue over the conflict.

Ukraine's most senior military official, General Valery Zaluzhny, was quoted last week as saying the two sides had hit a "stalemate", an assessment rejected by both Zelensky and the Kremlin.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Tuesday that G7 countries were working on providing help to Ukraine as Kiev braced for a second full winter of Russian attacks on energy facilities.

Systematic strikes by Moscow's forces last year targeted Ukraine's energy grid, leaving thousands without heating or electricity in freezing temperatures for long periods.

"It is clear, particularly at this moment, that around the world some (parties) are watching very closely how we will continue to support Ukraine," Baerbock told reporters.

"We will do that with everything we are doing."

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is set to join the G7 meeting by video conference.

burs-stu/smw