China Southern Airlines flight attendants win titles in service contest
Pupil's performance art persuades people to stop smoking
Nie Chenxi's clay tigers
Children's Day wishes
Chinese Kung Fu charms Silicon Valley
Tranquil Yankou ancient town
Lake Geneva: A show of swans
Beautiful sunset over the Irtysh River
Qingjing Mosque: Witness of the ancient Maritime Silk Road
Neiliansheng – more than 100 years of fashion
BRUSSELS, June 4 -- Group of seven (G7) leaders on Wednesday urged Russia to complete its troop withdrawal from the Ukrainian border, saying they stood ready to intensify targeted sanctions against Russia.
The group of industrialized nations welcomed the May 25 election in Ukraine and Petro Poroshenko's election as Ukraine's new president, according to a statement issued after the first day meeting of the G7 summit.
"We commend the willingness of the Ukrainian authorities to continue the national dialogue in an inclusive manner," the statement said.
The G7 countries urged Russia to recognize the results of the Ukrainian election, complete the withdrawal of its troops from the Ukrainian border, stop the flow of weapons and militants across the border and "to exercise its influence among armed separatists to lay down their weapons and renounce violence."
"We stand ready to intensify targeted sanctions and to implement significant additional restrictive measures to impose further costs on Russia should events so require," the statement said.
A G8 summit had been scheduled to take place in Russia's Sochi in early June under the Russian presidency. The G7 leaders, however, decided to meet in Brussels in the G7 format instead following the expulsion of Russia in March after the Crimean peninsula joined Russia after a controversial referendum.
Ukrainian authorities and some Western countries denounced the referendum as "illegal." The United States and the EU have initiated rounds of sanctions on Russian individuals and entities in connection to the Ukraine crisis.
Apart from the situation in Ukraine, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, the United States as well as the EU also discussed the global economy, energy, climate change and development.
Magnificent Hutiao Gorge
Heat waves hit China
Love at the construction site
Graduation photos bring memories back to life
Art school students present works in Nanjing
Opening ceremony of 67th Cannes Film Festival
Pulse of Xiamen - Int'l Yoga art festival in May
Photo story: Life of a scrap metal recycle worker
Training of the PLA's first female honor guard
Dali, an ideal summer vacation destination
Xichan Temple's little monk hit the Internet
Monologue of a modern dancer
College girl proposes to boyfriend on Weibo
Special operation members in counter-terrorism training
American football brings manhood out of boysDay|Week|Month