U.S. President Barack Obama said ahead of a Group of Seven (G7) summit that the meeting would look at how to stand up to Russia's "aggression" in Ukraine and challenges posed by Islamic extremism.
One of the issues G7 leaders would be discussing over their two-day summit was "standing up to Russian aggression in Ukraine," Obama said on June 7 as he was welcomed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a town near the summit site at Schloss Elmau in southern Germany.
Obama said the summit will also discuss the need to create jobs and action to combat climate change.
Greece's debt crisis is also expected to be high on the agenda.
The G7 groups Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Canada, and the United States.
Russia was excluded from the group – previously known as the G8 -- following Moscow's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine last year.
Ahead of the summit, thousands of protesters rallied in the nearby town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, sparking sporadic clashes with police.
Several people were taken to hospital with injuries.
Based on reporting by dpa, AFP, and Reuters