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AFP
Ottawa
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hopes the G7 will step up to fight extreme nationalism, and adopt concrete measures on the environment and women's education in crisis zones when it meets in Canada next month, he told AFP in an exclusive interview.
"Many countries and many citizens are questioning the current system, as seen by the emergence of extreme nationalism or right-wing populism, or (voicing opposition) to anti-globalization,"Trudeau said.
"This must be at the center of the discussions we will have at the G7: how to reassure citizens about the future we are building together,"he added in his parliamentary office in Ottawa.
"It is important that we remain vigilant and keep this order, this peace, this stability, this predictability that has helped us to create everything we have today."
President Donald Trump's recent decision to pull the US out of the Iranian nuclear deal is expected to be front and center at the June 8-9 summit in La Malbaie of leaders of the world's seven largest industrialized nations -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.
Global trade is also on the menu, as Canada, Mexico and the United States hold crunch talks to try to secure a new North American Free Trade Agreement, and Europe and Japan push back against US protectionist trade policies.
Still, Trudeau suggested that US President Donald Trump will not feel alone at the table, because the G7 summit will"seek consensus on security and economic issues."
There will be"real robust discussion on how we can move forward together,"Trudeau promised.
Host Canada is planning to focus on gender equality at the summit, unveiling a G7 advisory council on the issue.
"Gender parity, the defense of women's rights, the inclusion of LGBT and other minorities in society is not just a moral argument, it is an economic imperative,"Trudeau said.
The Canadian leader said he would encourage his G7 peers to tackle this issue in developing countries where"a lot of investment"is required, especially"in places of crisis, in refugee camps (where) education for girls is almost absent."
"If, as a G7 nation, we can invest in the education of women and girls in crisis, we will reduce the impact of the crisis... and make sure not to lose a generation"and preserve the ability of"these women and girls to contribute to a better world,"he said.
