The Group of Seven says it is prepared for "a serious dialogue” with Russia over the Ukraine crisis after Western countries and NATO accused Moscow of trying to create a pretext for invasion with an escalation of violence in Ukraine’s conflict-hit east.

On Friday morning, Russian-backed rebels in the east again accused Kyiv’s forces of shelling a rebel-held village. The accusation follows a slew of alleged incidents on Thursday.

Skirmishes in the area are common, but tensions near the border have intensified with the deployment of tens of thousands of Russian troops nearby.