As senior ministers from the world's 20 most powerful economies gathered in Mexico on Monday for informal talks on the state of the fragile global economy, German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle said that the European Union will continue to step up pressure on Assad's iron-clad rule over Syria. As the West struggles with an effective response to Assad's military assault on opposition towns in the middle eastern country, the German foreign minister said that the European Union will likely adopt fresh sanctions against the government of Syrian President in the coming week.