DILI, 12 April 2025 (TATOLI) –The 6th Inter-ministerial Meeting of g7+, held over two days in Dili from April 11-12, 2025, highlighted seven key roles of the g7+ mission. These roles include solidarity with nations affected by crises, commitment to peace, advocacy and cooperation, mobilizing global support, reducing economic debt faced by fragile nations, strengthening g7+ through institutional consolidation, enhancing g7+ leadership in global affairs, deciding on new leadership for g7+, and reporting on future plans.
The Secretary-General of g7+, Helder da Costa, stated that the results of the meeting showed that g7+ member nations demonstrated their solidarity with countries currently facing crises, such as Yemen, Haiti, and other nations.
“The importance of this meeting lies in the fact that the ministers adopted a mapping document regarding cooperation in various areas such as peace and reconciliation, natural resources, public financial management, and other sectors”, Secretary-General explained to journalists at Palm Spring Hotel, Fatuhada, Dili, on Saturday.
He elaborated that within this cooperation framework, all ministers agreed for g7+ to use it as a framework to facilitate cooperation with other countries. The ministers also committed to establishing diplomatic relations among g7+ member nations.
“Here, all the ministers also agreed that we will make a recommendation or request to the United Nations (UN) through Secretary-General António Guterres regarding the proposal of the President of the Republic of Timor-Leste, José Ramos Horta, to become a special envoy to mediate conflicts happening around the world, especially in nations affected by conflict,” he emphasized.
In a similar context, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bendito Freitas, stated that the g7+ Inter-ministerial Meeting held over two days in Dili was a success.
“A significant success from this is that we see this very important meeting receiving a message from the United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, who supports and recognizes the role of g7+, and also the presence of Elizabeth Spehar, a Canadian diplomat and senior UN official, who deals with issues related to peace and resilience”, Minister said.
He added that this demonstrates the importance of global relationships at the diplomatic level and in multilateralism.
“On strategic issues, g7+ members reported the difficulties we face, particularly in state-building, fragility, the spirit of resilience, and maintaining a strong and solid state,” Bendito explained.
He further mentioned that the discussions also touched on global issues, with the participation of the permanent mission representative and ambassador from Sierra Leone to the UN in New York, Marius Aristide Hoja Nzessioué, who informed us about global matters such as poverty, climate change, fragility issues, and resolutions undertaken by the UN Security Council regarding peace and humanitarian challenges.
Additionally, member states also shared the difficulties they face and sought to exchange experiences. Timor-Leste, through the National Center Chega!, shared its reconciliation efforts with mechanisms Timor-Leste encountered during the referendum.
The g7+ Secretariat wishes to express great appreciation to the Government of Timor-Leste, led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, for their strong support in making this event a success.
Journalist: Alexandra da Costa
Editor: Xisto Freitas/Translation: Rafael Ximenes de A. Belo
