Elmau, Germany, June 27, (dpa/GNA) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, addressed G7 leaders gathering for the second day of a summit in the Bavarian Alps on Monday, with recent developments in the war, the export of grain and post-war reconstruction on the agenda.
Speaking via video link, Zelensky told his counterparts from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States that he hoped Russia would withdraw its troops before the end of the year, to avoid fighting during the cold winter months.
The seven leaders were meeting for the second day of a three-day summit at the Schloss Elmau resort, where they hope to jointly increase pressure on Russia to end the invasion and mitigate the negative impacts of the war.
G7 leaders have already used the summit as a forum for the announcement of a ban on imports of Russian gold, and a joint infrastructure initiative to counter Chinese influence in middle-income countries.
A senior White House official said on Monday, that the leaders had also made progress on a possible cap on the price of Russian oil.
“The goal here is to starve Russian President Vladimir Putin, of his main source of cash and force down the price of Russian oil, to help blunt the impact of Putin’s war at the pump,” the official said.
Washington also said it would impose sanctions on state-owned Russian defence enterprises, in order to “limit Russia’s ability to replace the military equipment it has already lost during the brutal war against Ukraine.”
The US will also implement a higher tariff rate on more than 570 groups of Russian products, worth approximately $2.3 billion, the official said, adding that G7 leaders would seek authority to put any revenues derived from tariffs towards the Ukrainian war effort.
Also on Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hosted the leaders of non-G7 democracies Argentina, India, Indonesia, Senegal and South Africa, to discuss the climate crisis, public health and energy security. Germany has this year’s G7 presidency.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is set to join the group via video link to address the food crisis that has resulted from Russia’s war in Ukraine, now in its fifth month.
The conflict is preventing grain from leaving the country’s ports, and making food more expensive across the globe, with experts and aid groups warning of the potential for famine in parts of Africa and elsewhere.
A security exclusion zone around the venue, where Germany also conducted its last G7 in 2015, has sealed the area off to anyone without a permit for the past week.
Some 18,000 security personnel are on hand to police the summit and keep order during the numerous planned demonstrations.
GNA