Diplomat: major economies to hold June summit in Brussels instead of G-8 meeting in Russia

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – A senior diplomat says the Group of Seven major economies has decided to scrap a planned G-8 summit in Russia and meet instead in Brussels to protest Moscow's annexation of Crimea.

The diplomat said Monday that the June summit will only feature the top seven economies — not Russia — using the format the meetings had during the Cold War.

The diplomat spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the decision's official announcement in a joint statement.

U.S. President Barack Obama met with his counterparts from the other G-7 nations on the sidelines of a summit on nuclear security in the Netherlands to discuss the group's reaction to Russia's annexation of Crimea.

Russia had invited the G-8 group to a summit in its Black Sea resort Sochi in June.