They will explore the feasibility of imposing price caps on Russian oil and gas exports, but the devil was expected to be in the retail.
G7 leaders, saying they “would be on Ukraine’s side for as long as necessary,” also promised to sanction those responsible for preventing Ukrainian grain from reaching world markets and increasing military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
But Russia’s immediate response came with a missile attack on Ukraine’s central city of Kremenchuk, which hit a crowded shopping center while more than 1,000 people were reportedly working and shopping inside.
“It is impossible to even imagine the number of victims,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Telegram. The initial estimate was at least 13 people dead and 50 injured, but it is expected to continue to rise.
“It is useless to wait for Russia’s decency and humanity,” he said, after which G7 leaders condemned the “abominable” attack.
Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to be stepping up his assault on Ukraine in response to attempts by the G7 and NATO to increase pressure on him.
The Kremenchuk attack followed previous bombings of cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv – where five people were said to have died and 22 were injured – and Lviv, where targets included a district just 30 kilometers from the border. of Poland, a member of NATO.
NATO update
NATO is preparing to upgrade its four of its eight battle groups into full brigades, probably those from Poland and the three Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
This is more than just four battle groups before the Russian invasion on February 24, and increases the number of troops in high readiness by 40,000 to a figure that Mr. Stoltenberg said it was “well over 300,000.”
The NATO chief said some of the advanced troops would be stationed on the front line and some would be stationed in their home countries, but would train and exercise regularly in places where they would deploy in a crisis.
The transportation of goods was slower than people, so the stockpiles, fuels, weapons, and ammunition of the brigades would be deployed forward in the country.
The Baltic countries have worried that if troops were not permanently stationed on their territory, Russia could launch an invasive bombardment before NATO reinforcements arrive.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg addresses reporters on Monday. AP
But German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been among those reluctant to push through all his troops, and the summit of leaders seems likely to be resolved with that compromise, where infrastructure is in place but troops are stationed elsewhere.
Mr Stoltenberg was asked if Russia could see these advanced deployments as a new provocation.
“We are providing credible deterrence. The purpose of credible deterrence is not to provoke a conflict but to prevent a conflict,” he said.
“I am confident that Moscow, President Putin, understands our guarantees of collective security, understands the consequences of attacking a NATO allied country.”
The other concern of the Baltics is whether NATO would help them in any circumstance, and quickly enough, despite Article 5 of the NATO Treaty committing itself to collective self-defense.
Stoltenberg said invoking Article 5 was “a political decision” that “needs the consensus” of the 30 countries in the alliance.
NATO also needs a consensus to admit its two new applicants, Finland and Sweden, which would add a new massive land border between the alliance and Russia. Turkey opposes its demands.
Stoltenberg said he had negotiated a meeting on the sidelines of the summit between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Swedish and Finnish counterparts, but that he “made no promises.”
The Madrid summit “has never been a deadline” for admitting Finland and Sweden, he said, but “it offers us an opportunity we must seize.”
G7 measures
G7 leaders – which brings together the US, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Canada – will go straight from their summit in the Bavarian Alps on Monday to the NATO summit in Madrid on Tuesday.
In a “G7 statement on support for Ukraine” issued Monday night (Tuesday AEST), G7 leaders reiterated their commitment to provide military support to Ukraine and with humanitarian and reconstruction aid.
But they also issued an annex emphasizing the proportionality, flexibility and legality of the sanctions and other measures they were taking.
The annex said that the punitive actions of the G7 countries against Russia also “recognized our responsibilities to promote global financial stability, sustainable growth, food security and the stability and security of all countries, including countries of low and middle income “.
This seems to be aimed at countering the Kremlin’s efforts to describe the growing food crisis in Africa as the fault of Western sanctions rather than the invasion of Russia.
Scholz said Monday it would be difficult to enforce Western sanctions if other countries do not join.
Leaders from India, Indonesia, Argentina, South Africa and Senegal also attended the G7 summit, which was hosted by Germany in the tourist resort of Schloss Elmau.