British Prime Minister David Cameron won the backing of some of the U.K.’s closest allies in the battle to persuade his country’s voters to remain in the European Union.
At their annual meeting, this year in Ise-Shima, Japan, G7 leaders issued a statement arguing that the “Brexit,” or Britain’s decision to exit the EU, would pose a “serious risk” to world growth.
“There are potential shocks of a non-economic origin,” the leaders said in a declaration issued during their summit. “A U.K. exit from the EU would reverse the trend toward greater global trade and investment, and the jobs they create, and is a further serious risk to growth.”
Members of the G7 include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S.
Obama’s support for Cameron’s position of remaining in the EU is already well known. His comments that leaving would put Britain at the “back of the queue” to secure a U.S. trade deal, made during his visit to London in April, prompted a furious backlash among Brexit campaigners both in the U.K. and back at home in Washington.
The warnings about the U.K. leaving the EU were included in a lengthy communiqué that made broad commitments to global economic growth, greater infrastructure spending, greater efforts to reduce negative stereotypes of women and girls in education and employment choices, and renewed cooperation on maintaining freedom of navigation and international law in the South China Sea, among other issues.
On the escalating tensions in the South China Sea over China’s construction of islands, the communiqué offered little new, and called on nations to refrain from “force or coercion” in pushing territorial claims, and to respect freedom of navigation and international law.
“We are concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas, and emphasize the fundamental importance of peaceful management and settlement of disputes,” the statement said.
On Thursday, China had warned the G7 to limit its discussions to economic matters and not further exacerbate tensions over the South and East China Sea.
The communiqué was more specific on China when it comes to the dumping of steel on world markets at below-cost prices.
“We recognize the global excess capacity in industrial sectors, especially steel, is a pressing structural challenge… to be urgently addressed by the elimination of market distorting measures,” they said without mentioning China directly.
On the flood of Syrian refugees into Europe, the G7 declaration is also vague and broad.
“We commit to increase global assistance to meet immediate and long-term needs of refugees and other displaced persons as well as their host communities. The G7 encourages international financial institutions and bilateral donors to bolster their financial and technical assistance,” the statement says.
Details of the declaration’s message on the economic appeared to sidestep a push from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s efforts to win support for more aggressive economic stimulus policies.
Global growth is our urgent priority,” said the communiqué. “Taking into account country-specific circumstances, we commit to strengthening our economic policy responses…and to employing a more forceful and balanced policy mix, in order to swiftly achieve a strong, sustainable and balanced growth pattern.”
