World Leaders to Boycott G-8 Summit in Sochi

In light of the recent events in Ukraine’s Crimea region, and the deployment of Russian troops, a major boycott of the upcoming G-8 Summit in Russia's Sochi is expected.

"We note that Russia's actions in Ukraine also contravene the principles and values on which the G-7 and the G-8 operate. As such, we have decided for the time being to suspend our participation in activities associated with the preparation of the scheduled G-8 Summit in Sochi in June, until the environment comes back where the G-8 is able to have meaningful discussion”, the leaders of France, UK, United States, Japan, Germany, Canada, Italy, and the European Commission agreed in a joint statement.

"We call on Russia to address any ongoing security or human rights concerns that it has with Ukraine through direct negotiations, and/or via international observation or mediation under the auspices of the UN or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. We stand ready to assist with these efforts”, the statement added.

On Sunday, Canada was among the first countries to recall its Ambassador to Moscow for consultations and to express its intent to boycott the G-8 Summit in June.

"Ukraine's sovereign territory must be respected and the Ukrainian people must be free to determine their own future. We call on President Putin to immediately withdraw his forces to their bases and refrain from further provocative and dangerous actions”, Canadian PM Stephen Harper said.

So far, there has been no official response on the part of Russia regarding the planned boycott of the summit.

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