G7 fails to reach consensus on sanctions against Russia

The G7 group of countries failed to reach a consensus on imposing new sanctions on Russia over its support for the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

G7 foreign ministers meet in Lucca, Italy. Photo: AP

Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said today that there is "no consensus" among G7 countries on a new sanctions against Russia, according toAP.

The idea was endorsed by British Foreign SecretaryBoris Johnson raised the issue at a meeting in the Italian city of Lucca. However, Foreign Minister Alfano said that isolating Russia or pushing it into a corner "would be wrong".

"The G7's position is very clear, which is to support the existing sanctions" against Russia over its military activities in Ukraine, Mr. Alfano said.

At the meeting, the group said it needed to investigate last week's chemical weapons attack in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun in northern Syria before new measures could be adopted.

The countries also agreed that there is no solution to the crisis in Syria as long as President Bashar al-Assad remains in power.

Syria has denied carrying out a chemical weapons attack on the townKhan Sheikhun killed more than 80 people. In response, the US launched 59 cruise missiles at a Syrian air base that Washington said was involved in the attack.

Speaking at the end of the G7 summit, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the missile strike was "necessary in the national interest of the United States".

"We do not want the regime's uncontrolled chemical weapons stockpile to fall into the hands of ISIL or other terrorist groups who can and want to attack the United States or our allies," he said. "Nor can we accept the normalisation of the use of chemical weapons by actors and states in Syria or elsewhere."

Russia has strongly protested the US missile strike. Russian President Vladimir Putin considered it an act of aggression against a sovereign state, violating international law under a fabricated pretext.

According to VNE