Group of Seven governments are converging around a warning to Russia that President Vladimir Putin will face severe costs if he sends troops into Ukraine, a senior U.S. official said Saturday.
Discussions at a weekend meeting of G-7 foreign ministers in Liverpool, England, have been in line with President Joe Biden’s public stance toward the threat of a Russian invasion. While the administration hasn’t publicly laid out the potential costs to Russia, they would be implemented very quickly if necessary, according to the State Department official, who discussed the closed-door talks on condition of anonymity.
Russia deployment of troops and military equipment on Ukraine’s border pushed revived fears of war to the top of the G-7’s agenda. After a similar threat by Russia in the spring, U.S. officials say the renewed buildup of forces near Ukraine continues.
The U.S. official said Putin would face massive consequences if he invaded Ukraine and expressed confidence that a broad group of countries, including other G-7 nations, would join in imposing costs under that scenario.
Ministers also discussed China’s challenge to western democracies, including what the official described as predatory trade practices toward Europe. To the extent that China has antagonized European countries, it’s a result of its own behavior, the official said.
The G-7 talks are being hosted by the U.K., whose Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has billed the meetings as a show of strength from democracies against “aggressors who seek to undermine liberty.”
Iran was a topic as the Biden administration suggests that time for the U.S. to return to the Iranian nuclear deal with world powers is running short. A State Department spokesperson said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held productive meetings with counterparts from Germany, France, and the U.K. to discuss a way forward on the Iran nuclear deal.
Still, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock told reporters at the G-7 that there was “no progress” on nuclear talks with Iran and stressed that time was running out, Reuters reported.
