At
the G7 summmit, US president warns that ‘additional steps’ could be
taken if Russia were to ‘double down’ on behaviour in Ukraine
Obama speaks to the media during the G7 summit at Elmau Castle in Germany on Monday.
Photograph: Sven Hoppe/Sven Hoppe/dpa/Corbis Barack Obama has used the close of the G7 summit in Germany to deliver his strongest criticism yet of Vladimir Putin,
lambasting the Russian president’s isolationist approach as the seven
leaders signalled their readiness to tighten sanctions against Russia if
the conflict in Ukraine escalates.
“Does he continue to wreck his country’s economy and continue
Russia’s isolation in pursuit of a wrong-headed desire to recreate the
glories of the Soviet empire? Or does he recognise that Russia’s
greatness does not depend on violating the territorial integrity and
sovereignty of other countries?” the US president said at the close of
the intensive discussions in Bavaria as world leaders, including the
summit’s host, Angela Merkel, presented a united front against Putin.
The German chancellor stressed that while she hoped the situation in Ukraine
would not worsen, the G7 leaders were prepared to implement tougher
sanctions if it did. We are “ready, should the situation escalate –
which we don’t want – to strengthen sanctions if the situation makes
that necessary but we believe we should do everything to move forward
the political process of Minsk”, Merkel said.
Obama warned that if Russia were to “double down” on what he called its “aggressive behaviour” in Ukraine, “additional steps” could be taken.
Merkel, who maintained a sporadic line of communication with Putin
through the early stages of the conflict, stressed that current
sanctions would remain in place until Russia cooperated with
implementing a peace plan agreed in Minsk in February.
The European members of the G7 – Britain, Italy and France – said they would support the extension of the main EU sanctions when they meet later this month.
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Obama
had come to Bavaria on Sunday with the intention of pushing for a
tougher approach to Russia. And while Merkel was keen to stress that the
Ukraine crisis had not dominated the two days of talks, it was
certainly the uppermost topic in the coverage.
Russia was suspended from the G8 last year over its occupation and
annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region and its backing of separatists in
eastern Ukraine.
The G7 leaders pledged to intensify their support for Ukraine’s
reform and economic growth programmes, but refused to be drawn on the
subject of military aid. Some of them already deliver support under
bilateral agreements.
In its 17-page communique, the G7 warned: “We also stand ready to
take further restrictive measures in order to increase [the] cost on
Russia should its actions so require.”
Obama said it was wrong of Putin to suggest he was protecting the
Russian speakers in Ukraine, saying: “Russian speakers inside Ukraine
are precisely the ones who are bearing the brunt of the fighting.”
A Kremlin spokesman said earlier in the day that while Russia had
paid attention to the latest threats of sanctions, the G7 had produced
no “new theses”.
Dmitry Peskov said he believed the G7 leaders were far from united in
their approach to Russia. “We also draw attention to the fact that
among the participants of this meeting there are nuances in their
approaches. Some talk about the need for dialogue with Russia and the
impossibility of solving serious problems without this dialogue, so we
continue watching closely,” he said.
Speaking elsewhere on Monday, the Russian foreign minister, Sergei
Lavrov, said that western countries were obliged to ensure that Kiev
also stuck by the terms of the Minsk agreement it had agreed on,
including withdrawing heavy weapons and allowing more autonomy in
separatist-held regions.
“We proceed from the point of view that Germany
and France, other colleagues in the EU and the United States … work
with the Ukrainian authorities, encouraging them to honestly fully
implement the Minsk agreements,” he told a press conference.
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