We are meeting in Biarritz at a critical moment for the world and for Britain. We face unprecedented global challenges at the very time when public trust in the institutions designed to address them risks being undermined.
International tensions and new trade barriers are threatening global growth. Violence and conflict are trapping countries in poverty, depriving children, and particularly girls, of the universal right to education. Climate change is accelerating the devastating and unprecedented loss of habitats and species. My message to G7 leaders this week is this: the Britain I lead will be an international, outward-looking, self-confident nation.
We will be an energetic partner on the world stage. We will stand alongside our G7 allies to solve the most pressing international issues. As a family of nation-states we must reaffirm our core beliefs. Universal values, underpinned by democracy, serve to deliver global prosperity.
Britain will never flinch from the special responsibilities that go with being a pillar and an architect of the international system. Some people question the democratic decision this country has made, fearing that we will retreat from the world. Some think Britain’s best days are behind us. To those people I say: you are gravely mistaken.
We will stand up for liberty, democracy, the rule of law, equality and human rights – the ideals that we share with our friends and allies.
We will remain at the heart of the alliances that span the world. And we will continue to use the breadth of our expertise in diplomacy, defence and development to uphold and safeguard the global order on which peace and prosperity depends.
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