Group of Seven ministers to push Russia to end support for Assad
Gathering to deliberate on the West’s next steps after Syrian forces’ suspected chemical weapons attack killed dozens of civilians
Lucca — Group of Seven (G-7) foreign ministers were on Monday to send a "clear and co-ordinated message" to Russia over its stance on Syria as Washington ratcheted up the pressure after a suspected chemical attack in the war-torn country. British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson set the tone for the meeting, describing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as "toxic" and saying it was "time for [Russian President] Vladimir Putin to face the truth about the tyrant he is propping up". Diplomats from the seven major advanced economies were in Italy for their annual two-day meeting which had initially been expected to focus on talks with new US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson about hotspots such as Libya, Iran and Ukraine. But the agenda is now likely to be dominated by last week’s suspected chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held Syrian town that killed at least 87 civilians and the US cruise missiles fired at a Syrian air base in retaliation. It was the first time Washington has intervened...
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