Saturday night’s barrage of Iranian drones and missiles toward Israel has generated enormous global concern. After US President Joe Biden chaired an emergency meeting at the White House, the Italian presidency of the G-7 picked up the gauntlet and called a meeting, on Sunday afternoon, of the leaders of the group of the largest democracies world powers to analyze the situation and coordinate a diplomatic response. After the video conference, the G-7 leaders agreed to unequivocally condemn Iran’s “direct and unprecedented” action, clearly sided with Israel and called for easing tensions to avoid an “escalation uncontrollable” of the conflict in the Middle East.
“We express our solidarity and support for Israel and its people and reaffirm our commitment to their security,” the joint statement said. According to the agreed text, with this attack Tehran has taken another step towards the “destabilization” of the region and risks provoking an “uncontrollable regional escalation”. “This must be avoided. We will continue to work to stabilize the situation and avoid a greater escalation”, they insisted.
For this reason, the G-7 calls on Iran to stop its attacks and its members declare that they are ready to take further measures “now and in response to further de-escalation initiatives”. In the message, they also pledged to continue working for an immediate and sustained cease-fire in Gaza and the release of the Hamas hostages, in addition to delivering humanitarian assistance to Palestinians who need it.
Despite G-7 support for Israel, Washington has also made it clear to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that it will not support him in a counterattack against Tehran. It was already stated by Joe Biden himself during a call on Saturday, and it was reiterated yesterday by the spokesman for the US Security Council, John Kirby. In an interview with ABC, Kirby emphasized that the White House in no way wants the US to become more involved in the conflict and indicated that any eventual response to the Iranian attack on Saturday night depends on the Israeli forces and the sovereign State of Israel.
The damage caused by Iran’s launch of drones and missiles at Israel in retaliation for an airstrike in Syria that killed a senior Iranian general was “extremely minor” and demonstrated the air defense capability, the White House said. of Israel for having stopped hundreds of drones and ballistic and cruise missiles and having done so with allies such as the US or Jordan. “The president was very clear with Prime Minister Netanyahu about the success they enjoyed last night and the impact that success should have,” Kirby said. The Democratic president’s strategy, according to Kirby, is focused on preventing “this from turning into a broad regional war.” “That’s where his head is still,” he insisted in another interview with the Fox News channel.
The G-7 meeting, in which the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, also participated, was held by video conference and lasted less than an hour. inform sources of the Italian Executive. Michel pointed out that the situation in the Middle East, including Lebanon, will be discussed at the European Council next week. The position of the G-7 is also that of the EU. The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, also condemned the Iranian attack and defined the situation as an “unprecedented” escalation and a “threat to regional security”. “The EU reiterates its commitment to Israel’s security. In this extremely tense regional situation, a greater escalation is not in anyone’s interest,” warned Borrell. NATO also condemned the aggression and called for restraint from all parties to prevent the conflict from “getting out of control”.
Although the G-7 joint statement did not mention it, a senior US official told the country’s press that some of the group’s members are considering designating Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist group, a something they addressed during virtual conversations. The same source pointed out that the meeting also considered the possibility of imposing more sanctions on Tehran.
