G7 rivals China with grand infrastructure plan
G7 leaders wrapped up the second day of their summit on Saturday with an extended family photo that included the leaders of South Africa, South Korea and Australia.
Saturday’s working session focused on efforts to counter China's growing influence, with G7 leaders offering developing nations an infrastructure plan that could rival President Xi Jinping's multi-trillion-dollar Belt and Road initiative.
The White House said U.S. President Joe Biden and other G7 leaders hope their global infrastructure plan, known as the Build Back Better World initiative, will help close a $40 trillion infrastructure gap in needy countries.
China's Belt and Road Initiative involves development and investment initiatives that would stretch from Asia to Europe and beyond.
More than 100 countries have already signed on to cooperate with China in projects like railways and other infrastructure.
Meanwhile - on the subject of human rights abuses, Biden made "forceful comments" to G7 leaders about the need to make a strong statement" on what Washington and rights group say is the use of forced labor in China.
According to a U.S. official - there was a quote "spectrum of how far different countries are willing to go" in their criticism in a final communique from the three-day summit.
Though the official later said that the G7 leaders have reached consensus on the need for a shared approach to China selling exports at unfairly low prices and to human rights abuses.
U.N. experts and rights groups estimate over a million people, mainly Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, have been detained in China in recent years.
China denies all accusations of forced labor or abuse.
