G7 agrees to set new ceiling on Russian oil price: statement

The Group of Seven (G7) economic powers has agreed to consider imposing a ban on transporting Russian oil sold above a certain price, they said on Tuesday.

“We invite all like-minded countries to consider joining us in our actions,” the G7 leaders said in a statement.

The war in Ukraine and its dramatic economic consequences, in particular rising food and energy inflation, dominated this year’s summit of the group of wealthy democracies at a resort in Germany’s Bavarian Alps.

The G7 is looking at price caps as a way to prevent Moscow from profiting from the invasion of Ukraine, which has sharply raised energy prices, dampening Western efforts to reduce Russian oil and gas imports.

Russia’s oil export earnings rose in May even as volumes fell, the International Energy Agency said in its June monthly report.

A ceiling on how much other countries pay Russia for oil would depress the “resources that Russian President Vladimir Putin has to wage war and, secondly, increase stability and security of supply in global oil markets,” he said. a high-ranking US government official on Tuesday.

G7 leaders also agreed to push for a ban on Russian gold imports as part of efforts to tighten sanctions against Moscow, an EU official said on Tuesday.

The war, which has killed thousands and sent millions fleeing, has entered its fifth month with no signs of slowing down.

Firefighters and soldiers searched for survivors on Tuesday in the rubble of a shopping mall in central Ukraine hit by a Russian attack.

food insecurity

The G7 nations want to increase pressure on Russia without fueling the already rising inflation that is causing internal tensions and devastating developing countries.

There is a “real risk” of massive famine this year, as the war in Ukraine has exacerbated the negative impact of climate crises and the Covid-19 pandemic on food security, the United Nations Secretary-General said. António Guterres, last week.

G7 leaders on Tuesday pledged $4.5 billion to fight global hunger, according to the statement.

The United States will provide more than half of that amount, which would go towards efforts to fight hunger in 47 countries and fund regional organizations, a senior US official said.

The G7 is trying to rally emerging countries, many with close ties to Russia, to oppose Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, and has invited five major low- and middle-income democracies to the summit to win them over.