German Chancellor Angela Merkel has welcomed the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the United States and the European Union to a meeting expected to focus on issues like climate change, the fight against pandemics, Middle East turmoil and an upsurge of violence in Ukraine.
They are also due to discuss the world economic recovery and officials said Greece's unresolved debt standoff with its IMF and euro zone creditors, which is weighing on financial markets, would figure on the sidelines.
This will be the second summit of industrial nations to exclude Russia, frozen out of the G8 following its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region last year.
Reuters