G7 ministers on Thursday discussed imposing fresh sanctions on Russia on the eve of the first anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, as the UN General Assembly prepared to vote on a motion calling for “lasting” peace. The year-long conflict has devastated swathes of Ukraine, turned Russia into a pariah in the West and according to Western sources, has caused 150,000 casualties on each side. The approach of the first anniversary of Russian troops storming across the border on February 24, 2022 has seen Western leaders step up their show of unity with Kyiv, with the Spanish prime minister on Thursday the latest leader to visit the capital. “This has been the most difficult year of my life and that of all Ukrainians,” said Diana Chestakova, 23, who works for a publishing house and whose boyfriend has spent the last year away in the military. “I am sure that we will be victorious, but we don’t know how long we will have to wait and how many victims there are still to come.” In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin promised to boost arms production as Russia marked the annual “Defender of the Fatherland Day” holiday.