G7 leaders make case for extending Russia sanctions

EU Council chief Donald Tusk i has said it’s “realistic” the EU will extend Russia economic sanctions following the fighting in Marinka, Ukraine.

Speaking at the opening of the G7 summit at the Schloss Elmau in Germany, he said “it’s realistic, in fact moderate, but also consistent” for EU leaders to take the step when they meet in Brussels later this month.

He also said the “formal, technical decision” - the legal act underpininng the move - can be “arranged in the next few days”.

EU leaders, back in March, already threatened to extend the measures, which target Russian banks, arms firms, and energy companies, from July until December.

Tusk noted that pro-Russian forces’ attempt to capture the Ukrainian town of Marinka earlier this week constitutes another “clear violation” of the so-called Minsk ceasefire agreement.

“Given the current situation, if anyone wants to start a debate about changing the sanctions regime, the discussion could only be about strengthening it”, he said, alluding to sanctions sceptics, such as Greece, Hungary, and Italy.

He added that he'll seek “clear political support” for the extension from G7 states - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and the US - at the Schloss Elmau event.

Recalling Russia’s exclusion, over its annexation of Crimea last year, from what used to be G8 summits, Tusk said: “Russia is not among us here today and will not be invited as long as it behaves aggressively against Ukraine and other countries”.

His words were echoed by other G7 leaders.

US president Barack Obama i, who met German chancellor Angela Merkel i in the local town of Kruen ahead of plenary talks, noted: "We're going to discuss … standing up to Russian aggression in Ukraine”.

The two agreed EU and US sanctions should stay in place until there’s “full implementation" of Minsk, the White House said.

Merkel, in an interview with German broadcaster DW, the same day, noted that “Russia remains an important partner” on issues such as Iran and Syria.

But she added: “Russia has not made … progress in the past few years toward adopting many of the ideas that we share in the G7”.

David Cameron, the British leader, told media: "It [the EU sanctions regime] has an impact on all countries. [But] Britain hasn't let our pre-eminence in financial services get in the way of taking a robust response to Russian-backed aggression and I don't think other countries should either”.

Absent guest

For his part, the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin i, one day earlier in an interview with Italian daily Corriere della Sera, repeated claims the US staged the Ukraine crisis for geostrategic reasons.

“Let’s suppose that the United States would like to maintain its leadership in the Atlantic community. It needs an external threat, an external enemy to ensure this leadership … Who can be frightening? And then suddenly this crisis unfolds in Ukraine. Russia is forced to respond. Perhaps, it was engineered on purpose.”

He urged Greek and Italian leaders to put national interests ahead of EU or Western solidarity, whether on the Greek financial crisis or on EU-Russia trade.

“It is up to the Greek people to make a sovereign decision as to which union and [currency] zone to be part of”, he said.

He noted that Italy-Russia trade has grown 11-fold “in recent years”, that there are 400 Italian companies active in Russia, and that Russian tourists spend €1 billion a year in Italy.

“All this, of course, lays the foundation for a special relationship between our countries”, Putin, who spoke ahead of his visit to the Milan Expo, said.

“My Italian partners have always put the interests of Italy, of the Italian people, first and believed that in order to serve the interests of their country, including economic and political interests, they must maintain friendly relations with Russia”.