US pushes for Ukraine aid, united front against China’s trade practices at G7

Frankfurt: The US sought to build support for squeezing more money for Ukraine out of frozen Russian assets and for uniting against China’s trade practices as finance ministers from the Group of Seven rich democracies opened a two-day meeting on Friday on the shores of northern Italy’s scenic Lago Maggiore.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is pushing at the meeting in Stresa for “more ambitious options” to unlock money from some USD 260 billion in Russian central bank reserves frozen in Europe and the US after the February 24, 2022 invasion.

Aid for Ukraine has become more urgent as Kyiv’s finances look shakier against the prospect that the conflict will last through next year and beyond.