A meeting of the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers in England will wrap up on December 12 after talks dominated by Russia’s massive troop buildup near Ukraine’s border.
The ministers’ two-day meeting in the northwestern English city of Liverpool has taken place against the backdrop of the troop buildup and concerns that it could be a prelude to an invasion into Ukraine.
The U.S. and its NATO allies reiterated during the first day of the meeting on December 11 that they would inflict heavy sanctions on Russia’s economy if that happens.
If Russia does not heed the warnings “there will be massive consequences and severe costs in response, and the G7 is absolutely united in that,” British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said. ““The kinds of costs that we are talking about are designed to be implemented very, very fast.”
Truss also said that the G7 — Britain, Germany, France, the United States, Italy, Canada, and Japan — must “take a stand as a united front against aggressors who seek to undermine freedom.”
U.S. President Joe Biden on December 11 also reiterated his warning that Russia would face devastating economic consequences if it invaded Ukraine.
Biden, who spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a videoconference on December 7, said he “made it absolutely clear…that if he moves on Ukraine, the economic consequences for his economy are going to be devastating, devastating.”
Russia’s standing in the world, Biden said, would change “markedly” in the event of an incursion, he said, speaking in Wilmington, Delaware.
European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell, who is also attending the conference, said the ministers were determined “to make Russia understand that anything that could represent an attack to Ukraine would have a high price.”
A senior U.S. State Department official said that, despite the intensity of the warnings, there was still a diplomatic path to de-escalate the tensions and urged Russia to return to the negotiating table.
Moscow denies having any plans to attack Ukraine and has pointed to Kyiv’s own allegedly aggressive behavior.
The G7 ministers also discussed China’s increased military activity in the Indo-Pacific region and negotiations in Vienna to try to revive a deal to limit Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
Truss warned this week that the Vienna talks are “the last chance for Iran to sign up” again to the deal, which was meant to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program in return for loosened economic sanctions. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock also warned on December 11 that “time is running out” to find a way to revive the deal.
A statement on the outcomes of the meeting, due on December 12, is expected to include a joint call for Iran to moderate its nuclear program and grasp the opportunity to revive a multilateral agreement under which Tehran limits the program in exchange for sanctions relief.
Truss said ahead of the meeting that she hoped G7 members would be more strident in their defense of “the free world” and that the statement would send a joint signal for freedom and democracy.
