Here's a G7 update from our news desk:
The White House says President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have both agreed that economic sanctions against Russia should remain until the "full implementation" of the Minsk II peace accord and Russia respects its neighbor's sovereignty.
The two leaders met on June 7 in Bavaria before an annual summit of leaders from the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized nations.
The United States and its European allies imposed several rounds of economic penalties on Russia after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine last year.
Russia was also excluded from the G7 -- previously known as the G8 -- following Moscow's seizure of Crimea.
The Minsk II accord, agreed in February in the Belarus capital, is aimed at ending the fighting in eastern Ukraine.
While leading to a big drop in fighting, the accord has been regularly violated, with each side accusing the other of breaking the truce.
The West accuses Russia of backing separatist rebels in Ukraine, a charge Russia denies.
(AP, AFP)