The United Kingdom urged allies to “present a united front against…Russian posturing towards Ukraine” ahead of a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in Liverpool this weekend.
“This weekend the world’s most influential democracies will take a stand against aggressors who seek to undermine liberty and send a clear message that we are a united front,” UK foreign secretary Liz Truss said in a statement.
The UK warned that any Russian invasion of Ukraine would be “a serious strategic error and yield severe consequences.”
NATO countries have warned they will inflict economic sanctions if Russia invades Ukraine.
Many Western nations have expressed concern about a buildup of troops on the Ukrainian border.
Truss also said she wanted to work with other countries “to make sure that free democratic nations are able to have an alternative to Russian gas supplies” amid a natural gas crisis in Europe.
The meeting will be a first for Germany’s new foreign minister Annalena Baerbock after the country’s new government took office this past week.
Meanwhile, negotiations are continuing in Vienna in an attempt to bring parties back in line with the Iran nuclear deal.
Climate change, tensions in the western Balkans, Afghanistan and North Korea are also on the agenda for a meeting that will include both foreign and development ministers from the G7 countries.
Britain is keen to work more closely with Asian nations as part of an “Indo-Pacific tilt” following the UK’s departure from the European Union last year — both to boost U.K. trade and as a counterweight to China’s dominance.
Truss has invited ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to the Liverpool meeting, though many will be joining remotely because of the coronavirus pandemic.
