G7 leaders to squeeze Russia
G7 leaders arrived in Hiroshima, Japan yesterday to weigh tighter sanctions on Russia and protections against China's "economic coercion", surrounded by reminders about the harrowing cost of war. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is hosting leaders from six other wealthy democracies in his hometown -- a city synonymous with nuclear destruction and now peppered with peace monuments. Over three days, leaders including US President Joe Biden will try to forge a united front on Russia, China and a host of other pressing issues where the allies' interests do not always neatly align. Biden's delicate diplomatic offensive in Asia hit a bump even before Air Force One left the United States: a domestic budget row forced him to cancel stops in Papua New Guinea and Australia. He arrived in Hiroshima in driving rain yesterday. When the G7 summit gets underway today, Russia's 15-month-old invasion of Ukraine will top the agenda, after a long winter of grinding warfare in Bakhmut and other frontline towns.
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