⁍ The ministers said they ‘strongly regret’ moves by some countries to skip full participation in the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative.

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⁍ While the statement did not mention China specifically, G7 officials said the message was clearly aimed at Beijing.

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⁍ ‘China’s participation in DSSI is totally insufficient,’ Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said.

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– Finance ministers from the US, UK, Japan, Germany, Italy, and France have taken a hard line against China over its lack of transparency in lending. “China’s participation in DSSI is totally insufficient,” Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters after a G7 teleconference. “I told G7 that we must apply further pressure on China, that DSSI needs to be extended beyond this year-end deadline, and that we must ensure burdens will be shared fairly by all creditors.” The ministers also “strongly regret” moves by some countries to skip full participation in the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative by classifying their state-owned institutions as commercial lenders, Reuters reports. While the statement did not mention China specifically, G7 officials said the message was clearly aimed at Beijing, which has failed to include loans by state-owned China Development Bank and other government-controlled entities in its official debt totals when dealing with countries seeking debt relief. “China’s participation in DSSI is totally insufficient,” Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters after a G7 teleconference. “I told G7 that we must apply further pressure on China, that DSSI needs to be extended beyond this year-end deadline, and that we must ensure burdens will be shared fairly by all creditors.”