The Group of Seven developed economies on Tuesday wraps up a summit intended to send a strong signal of long-term commitment to Ukraine’s future, ensuring that Russia pays a higher price for its invasion while also attempting to alleviate a global hunger crisis and show unity against climate change. The leaders of the U.S., Germany, France, Italy, the U.K., Canada and Japan on Monday pledged to support Ukraine “for as long as it takes” after conferring by video link with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Read: G7 countries to provide $19.8 billion in aid to Ukraine The summit host, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said he “once again very emphatically set out the situation as Ukraine currently sees it.” Zelenskyy’s address, amid a grinding Russian advance in Ukraine’s east, came hours before Ukrainian officials reported a deadly Russian missile strike on a crowded shopping mall in the central city of Kremenchuk. Officials have said during the summit that leaders of the major economies are preparing to unveil plans to pursue a price cap on Russian oil, raise tariffs on Russian goods and impose other new sanctions. From the secluded Schloss Elmau hotel in the Bavarian Alps, the G-7 leaders will continue straight to Madrid for a summit of NATO leaders — where fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will again dominate the agenda. All G-7 members other than Japan are NATO members, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been invited to Madrid. Zelenskyy has openly worried that the West has become fatigued by the cost of a war that is contributing to soaring energy costs and price hikes on essential goods around the globe. The G-7 has sought to assuage those concerns. While the group’s annual gathering has been dominated by Ukraine and by the war’s knock-on effects, such as the challenge to food supplies in parts of the world caused by the interruption of Ukrainian grain exports, Scholz has been keen to show that the G-7 also can move ahead on pre-war priorities. The summit host has been keen to secure agreement on the creation of a “climate club” for countries that want to speed ahead when it comes to tackling global warming. Read:Biden urges Western unity on Ukraine amid war fatigue After a meeting Monday with leaders of five developing nations, a joint statement issued by Germany emphasized the need to accelerate a “clean and just energy transition” that would see an end to the burning of fossil fuels without causing a sharp rise in unemployment. In the cautiously phrased statement, the leaders tentatively endorsed the global “climate club” idea.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that the UK will donate at least 100 million surplus coronavirus vaccine doses within the next year, including 5 million beginning in the coming weeks. The donation is in addition to the UK work to support Oxford-AstraZeneca’s contribution to fighting COVID and the UK's financial backing to COVAX. The UK will donate 5 million doses by the end of September, beginning in the coming weeks, primarily for use in the world’s poorest countries.  Read:Tireless advocate of migrant refugees Swing passes away The Prime Minister has also committed to donating a further 95 million doses within the next year, including 25 million more by the end of 2021.  Some 80% of the 100m doses will go to COVAX and the remainder will be shared bilaterally with countries in need. By sharing 5 million doses in the coming weeks the UK will meet an immediate demand for vaccines for the countries worst affected by coronavirus without delaying completion of our initial domestic vaccination programme. Last week the British Prime Minister asked fellow G7 leaders to help vaccinate the entire world by the end of next year. By vaccinating more people around the world not only will we help bring an end to the global coronavirus pandemic, we will reduce the risk to people in the UK.  This includes significantly reducing the threat posed by vaccine-resistant variants emerging in areas with large-scale outbreaks. The UK helped to establish COVAX last year and is its fourth-biggest donor, pledging £548 million to the scheme.  Read:FM's NY Visit: Dhaka to press for early repatriation of Rohingyas

Leaders of Group of Seven (G7) will hold a videoconference on COVID-19 early next week, the White House said on Friday.