Russia faces “serious consequences” if it invades Ukraine. This was stated in a joint statement by the Group of Seven. The foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Japan, Italy, Germany, the United States and a representative of the European Union met in Liverpool this weekend to discuss tensions over Russia and Ukraine, among other things.
In the statement, the ministers did not specify what the consequences of the Russian invasion would be. The United States has already threatened to impose severe economic sanctions, such as cutting Russia off from the international payment system Swift. This would complicate Russian trade with the rest of the world.
The G7 states affirm that they stand behind Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and that any violation of it is illegal. The ministers therefore call on Russia to de-escalate military tensions in the border region.
The concern of the G7 countries is the build-up of Russian forces near the border with Ukraine, where the United States says about 70,000 Russian troops are stationed. Ukraine even talks about more than 90,000 soldiers.
In this video, you can see how tensions over Ukraine have risen sharply lately:
