Now we are six: G7 leaders try to salvage their summit
Kananaskis: Six of the Group of Seven leaders are trying on the final day of their Tuesday to show the wealthy nations’ club still has the clout to shape world events despite the early departure of President Donald Trump.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and his counterparts from the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Japan will be joined by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and NATO chief Mark Rutte to discuss Russia’s relentless war on its neighbor.
World leaders had gathered in Canada with the specific goal of helping to defuse a series of pressure points, only to be disrupted by a showdown over Iran’s nuclear programme that could escalate in dangerous and uncontrollable ways. Israel launched an aerial bombardment campaign against Iran on Friday, and Iran has hit back with missiles and drones.
Trump left the summit in the Canadian Rocky Mountain resort of Kananaskis a day early late Monday, saying: “I have to be back, very important.” It came as conflict between Israel and Iran intensifies and the US leader declared that Tehran should be evacuated “immediately” — while also expressing optimism about a deal to stop the violence.
Before leaving, Trump joined the other leaders in issuing a statement saying Iran “can never have a nuclear weapon” and calling for a “de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza.” Getting unanimity — even on a short and broadly worded statement — was a modest measure of success for the group.
At the summit, Trump warned that Tehran needs to curb its nuclear programme before it’s “too late.”
He said Iranian leaders would “like to talk” but they had already had 60 days to reach an agreement on their nuclear ambitions and failed to do so before the Israeli aerial assault began. “They have to make a deal,” he said.
Asked what it would take for the US to get involved in the conflict militarily, Trump said Monday morning, “I don’t want to talk about that.“
But by Monday afternoon, Trump warned ominously on social media, “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” Shortly after that, Trump decided to leave the summit and skip a series of Tuesday meetings that would address the war in Ukraine and trade issues. The sudden departure only heightened the drama of a world that seems on verge of several firestorms.
Trump already has imposed severe tariffs on multiple nations that risk a global economic slowdown. There has been little progress on settling the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
Trump’s stance on Ukraine puts him fundamentally at odds with the other G7 leaders, who back Ukraine and are clear that Russia is the aggressor in the war. The US president on Monday suggested there would have been no war if G7 members hadn’t expelled Putin from the organisation in 2014 for annexing Crimea.
Trump on Monday demurred when asked if he supported Russia, saying “I only care about saving lives.”
With talks on ending the war at an impasse, Starmer said Britain and other G7 members were slapping new tariffs on Russia in a bid to get it to the ceasefire
negotiating table.
