RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin’s doomed drive to recreate Soviet empire glories of the past was hurting his people, their economy and their global standing, US President Barack Obama warned today.

For the third time in a row, the Russian leader was barred from a G7 world leaders’ summit as his aggression in Ukraine again topped a heavy leaders’ agenda of war and terrorism, as well as debate on the future of Greece’s economy, Britain’s European exit agenda and climate change.

BACKGROUNDER: Vladimir Putin, just what are you thinking?

But it was Ukraine again that dominated talks — particularly after the British Government announced while it was not in the game of making provocative statements or acts, it was prepared to host US nuclear weapons on UK soil for the first time since the end of the Cold War. This was direct response to Russia stockpiling weapons at Kaliningrad — the small Russian enclave port on the Baltic Sea between Poland and Lithuania.

Global concern

President Obama said Russian continued “aggression” in Ukraine was a global concern and further isolated Russia.

A communiqué signed by the G7 leaders, excluding the absent Putin, made clear further sanctions were a possibility.

“Ultimately this is going to be an issue for Mr Putin, he’s got to make a decision,” Mr Obama said.

“Does he continue to wreck his country’s economy and continue Russia’s isolation in pursuit of a wrongheaded desire to recreate the glories of the Soviet empire or does he recognise that Russia’s greatness does not depend on violating other countries’ territory?”

Agreement breached

Leaders said it had been made clear to Russia during the Minsk ceasefire agreement last year that it had to pull its troops out of Ukraine’s east.

Ukraine’s president Petro Poroshenko said yesterday — as another 28 Ukraine troops were killed or wounded this week — that Russian troop numbers had increased in Ukraine to at least 9000 with another 40,000 amassed on the border.

Across Europe there is a sense of foreboding with Russia’s posturing which has included a record number of air space border flights by its bombers prompting the forced scramble of UK fighter jets to respond to the potential air incursion. Denmark has also been playing the same cat and mouse game along its border while NATO has authorised troops to be stationed about the Baltic and Ukraine notably in Poland.

Islamic State on the agenda

Meanwhile also on the G7 agenda was discussion on Islamic State. In a first, the world leaders invited Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Nigeria’s newly elected President Muhammadu Buhari to the table to highlight the threat to those countries specifically from IS.

“We reaffirm our commitment to defeating this terrorist group and combating the spread of its hateful ideology,” the leaders said in a joint statement after they were handed a “shopping list” of weapons requests by both nations to fight the expansion of the self declared caliphate.