Top diplomats from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialised democracies publicly showed their consensus on Ukraine and Sudan on Wednesday (November 12, 2025), but stayed away from contentious issues like the U.S. military strikes on boats in the Caribbean and trade.

The foreign ministers of the G7 met with Ukraine’s foreign minister on Wednesday (November 12) as Kyiv tries to fend off Russian aerial attacks that have brought rolling blackouts across the country. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said Ukraine needs the support of its partners to survive what will be a “very difficult, very tough winter.”

“We have to move forward to pressure Russia, to raise the price for the aggression, for Russia, for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin, to end this war,” Mr. Sybiha said.

The G7 ministers said in a joint statement at the conclusion of the two-day gathering that they are increasing the economic costs to Russia and exploring measures against those who finance Russia’s war efforts.

Canada announced more sanctions against Russia, including targeting those involved in the development and deployment of drones, and Britain, a day earlier, pledged money for Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made no immediate announcements about new U.S. initiatives but said on social media that the meeting delved into ways “to strengthen Ukraine’s defense and find an end to this bloody conflict.” “We are doing whatever is necessary to support Ukraine,” Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said.

The meeting in Niagara-on-the-Lake, near the U.S. border, followed U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to end trade talks with Canada after the Ontario provincial government ran an anti-tariff advertisement in the U.S., which upset him. That followed a spring of acrimony, since abated, over the president’s insistence that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state.

Ms. Anand declined to talk about the trade dispute.

“I am here to talk about the work that the G7 ministers are doing,” she said. “And that is exactly what I think I should be discussing.”

Mr. Anand met with Mr. Rubio, but said she did not bring up trade talks, noting that a different minister leads the trade issue.

U.S. military strikes also ‘didn’t come up’

The Trump administration says the U.S. military has killed at least 75 people in 19 known strikes against what it says are drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. The administration has been under pressure from Congress to provide more information about who is being targeted and the legal justification for the strikes.

Mr. Rubio told reporters that questions about the military campaign and intelligence sharing in support of the operations were not raised with him at all by any of his G7 or other counterparts on Wednesday (November 12).

“It didn’t come up once,” Mr. Rubio said. He also denied a report that Britain has stopped sharing intelligence.

“Again, nothing has changed or happened that is impeded in any way our ability to do what we’re doing. Nor are we asking anyone to help us with what we’re doing — in any realm. And that includes military,” Mr. Rubio said.

Strong statements on Sudan

The G7 ministers in their joint statement strongly condemned the recent escalation of violence in war-torn Sudan, and Mr. Rubio decried the humanitarian situation and said “something needs to be done” to cut off the weapons and other support that the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are receiving as they battle the Sudanese army.

Asked by reporters about the role of the United Arab Emirates in the conflict, Mr. Rubio said the U.S. knows who’s involved in supplying the RSF.

“I can just tell you, at the highest levels of our government, that case is being made and that pressure is being applied to the relevant parties,”Mr. Rubio said, without naming any country. “This needs to stop. I mean, they’re clearly receiving assistance from outside.”

The Associated Press has reported that U.S. intelligence assessments for many months have found that the United Arab Emirates, a close U.S. ally, has been sending weapons to the RSF. The UAE denies backing the RSF.

The G7 comprises Canada, the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan. Ms. Anand also invited the foreign ministers of Australia, Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, South Korea, South Africa and Ukraine to the meeting, which began Tuesday (November 11).

Published – November 13, 2025 06:59 am IST

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a press conference at the end of the G7 foreign ministers meeting on Capri island, Italy, April 19, 2024. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
| Photo Credit: REMO CASILLI

G7 Foreign Ministers on April 19 expressed “strong concern” about transfers of dual use materials and weapons components from Chinese businesses to Russia for use in Moscow’s military expansion.

At a meeting in Italy, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had urged European counterparts to increase pressure on Beijing, who Washington accuses of helping Russia’s “most ambitious defence expansion since the Soviet era”.

“We express our strong concern about transfers to Russia from businesses in the People’s Republic of China of dual-use materials and weapons components that Russia is using to advance its military production,” the Group of Seven ministers said in a final statement after talks on the island of Capri.

“This is enabling Russia to reconstitute and revitalise its defence industrial base, posing a threat both to Ukraine and to international peace and security.”

“China should ensure that this support stops, as it will only prolong this conflict and increase the threat that Russia poses to its neighbours.”

In addition to the United States, the G7 countries include Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Japan and Italy, which holds the presidency this year.

Washington has set a red line for Beijing — not to supply weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine. And so far it has not presented proof that this has been crossed.

But the United States is increasingly denouncing what it says is China’s backdoor support for Moscow.

A senior US official said last week that China was helping Russia undertake “its most ambitious defence expansion since the Soviet era and on a faster timeline than we believed possible” early in the Ukraine conflict.

Unveiling U.S. findings, officials said China was helping Russia on a range of areas including the joint production of drones, space-based capabilities and exports vital for producing ballistic missiles.

China has been the key factor in revitalising Russia’s defence industrial base “which had otherwise suffered significant setbacks” since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a senior US official told reporters on condition of anonymity.