G7 diplomats mull how to get Russia to engage in Ukraine peace talks

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By Daphne Psaledakis and Maria Cheng

NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, Canada (Reuters) -Group of Seven foreign ministers on Wednesday discussed ways to increase pressure on Russia over the war in Ukraine, amid doubts over whether Moscow is interested in negotiating an end to the conflict.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was in Canada’s Niagara region for the meeting, which was also joined by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who pushed for Kyiv’s allies to strengthen its long-range missile capability and bolster its energy sector as Ukraine enters another winter at war.

Countries attending the meeting of foreign ministers in Canada on Wednesday were also concerned about U.S. military operations in the Caribbean and whether armed strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats carried out by Washington violate international law.

U.S. President Donald Trump has sought a rapprochement with Moscow and held a summit in Alaska with Putin in August. But he has backed calls for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine with forces at their present positions, while Moscow has said it wants Kyiv to yield more territory.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told Reuters on the sidelines of the talks that discussion on Ukraine revolved around putting more pressure on Russia to seek peace after the U.S. concluded that Moscow was not serious about ending the war.

“In order to make them have peace, we have to put more pressure,” Kallas said. “They (the US) have had engagements (with Russia) and we have all welcomed their engagements so that to really achieve peace. But to be very, very frank… their assessment is that Russia has no way changed its goals so it’s not genuine about the peace talks.”

Efforts to organize a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump were put on ice last month, as Moscow’s rejection of an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine cast a cloud over attempts at negotiations.

Ukraine’s Sybiha, after meeting G7 foreign ministers, praised Washington for new energy sanctions imposed on Russian oil companies last month.

“We need to continue to increase the cost of war for Putin and his regime, forcing Russia to end the war,” he wrote on X.

Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand earlier announced additional sanctions against Moscow, targeting Russia’s drone program, liquefied natural gas entities and vessels from Russia’s shadow fleet, among others, according to a statement. 

BOAT STRIKES

The U.S. military has carried out at least 19 strikes so far against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean and off the Pacific coasts of Latin America, killing at least 76 people.

The French foreign minister on Tuesday openly criticized U.S. strikes, while a senior European official on Wednesday said that the G7 meeting would be “the ideal place” for the U.S. military actions to be discussed, though it was not officially on the agenda.

“This is where we are supposed to exchange views on controversial issues – and what the U.S. is doing in the Caribbean is concerning for everyone,” the European official said.

“We have observed with concern the military operations in the Caribbean region, because they violate international law and because France has a presence in this region through its overseas territories, where more than a million of our compatriots reside,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on the sidelines of the G7.

The foreign ministers from the G7 wealthy nations held a meeting on maritime security on Wednesday morning but it was unclear if the boat strikes were directly addressed.

The Trump administration insists those targeted were transporting drugs, without providing evidence or publicly explaining the legal justification for the decision to attack the boats rather than stop them and arrest those on board.

The United States has publicly justified its actions as consistent with Article 51 of the founding U.N. Charter, which requires the U.N. Security Council to be immediately informed of any action states take in self-defense against armed attack.

While acknowledging the U.S. justification for the strikes, a group of independent U.N. experts said last month: “Even if such allegations were substantiated, the use of lethal force in international waters without proper legal basis violates the international law of the sea and amounts to extrajudicial executions.”

On Tuesday, CNN reported that the United Kingdom was no longer sharing intelligence with Washington about suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean because it believes the attacks are illegal.

A State Department official said Rubio held a brief meeting with UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper on the margins of the G7 ministerial meeting.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro ordered Colombian public security forces to suspend intelligence sharing with U.S. intelligence agencies until Washington stops attacking boats in the Caribbean.

(Reporting by Daphne Psaledakis, Maria Cheng, David Ljunggren, Michelle Nichols and Simon LewisEditing by Humeyra Pamuk and Alistair Bell)