Obama, G7 leaders meet without Russia as Ukraine exits Crimea
Source: Reuters
(Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama conferred with major industrialised allies in the Group of Seven on Monday on how to pressure Russia over its seizure of Crimea after Ukraine told its remaining troops to leave the region for their own safety.
Obama, who has imposed tougher sanctions on Moscow than European leaders over its takeover of the Black Sea peninsula, sought backing for his firm line at a meeting deliberately called to exclude Russia, which joined in 1998 to form the G8.
"As long as the political environment for the G8 is not at hand, as is the case at the moment, there is no G8 - neither as a concrete summit meeting or even as a format for meetings," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said before the talks.
She said she did not expect the hour-long session of leaders of the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Britain and Italy, plus the European Union, to decide on new sanctions, although the leaders would discuss possible further measures to be taken if the situation escalates.
Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/24/uk-ukraine-crisis-idUKBREA2J1E820140324
G7 should cancel Sochi summit with Russia - Cameron.
(Reuters) - The Group of Seven big economies should cancel a meeting with Russia in June, British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday, as Western leaders prepared to discuss their response to Russia's annexation of Crimea.
"We should be clear there's not going to be a G8 summit this year in Russia. That's absolutely clear," Cameron told reporters during the nuclear security summit in The Hague.
Cameron was speaking ahead of a hastily-convened meeting with other leaders of the G7 - a group of industrialised nations that excludes Russia, which joined in 1998 to form the G8.
The G7 has already suspended preparations for a G8 summit scheduled to be held in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi in June.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/24/uk-ukraine-crisis-cameron-idUKBREA2N0ZL20140324
