ADVERTISEMENTUS President Donald Trump has denied that he departed the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada on Monday night to work on a ceasefire deal between Israel and Iran, refuting his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron’s earlier claims.
Macron “mistakenly said that I left the G7 summit in Canada to go back to DC to work on a ‘ceasefire’ between Israel and Iran,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
“Wrong! He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a ceasefire. Much bigger than that,” Trump added.
Earlier, Macron told reporters at the G7 that the US president had made a ceasefire offer to Israel and Iran. “There is indeed an offer to meet and exchange. An offer was made especially to get a ceasefire and to then kick-start broader discussions,” he said.
World leaders at the summit scrambled to find a way to contain the five-day-long conflict, which has already resulted in the deaths of hundreds in both Israel and Iran.
Prior to his exchange with Macron, Trump had warned that Tehran needs to dismantle its nuclear programme before it’s “too late”.
The US president 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 an Israeli aerial assault began four days ago. “They have to make a deal,” he said.
Summie host, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the world is looking to the G7 for leadership during these testing times.
“We’re gathering at one of those turning points in history,” Carney said. “The world’s more divided and dangerous.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz convened for an informal meeting lasting one hour shortly after their arrival at the summit late on Sunday.
Merz, speaking to reporters at the summit, said his country is planning to draft a final communique proposal on the conflict, stressing that Iran must under no condition “be allowed” to acquire nuclear weapons-capable material.
Trump said Iran «is not winning this war. And they should talk and they should talk immediately before it’s too late.” The US president was also asked whether Washington would join Israel in its military operation in Iran, but Trump declined to comment on the matter.
Trump and Starmer announce new trade agreement
The US president and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Monday that they have signed a trade deal which will slash tariffs on UK auto and aerospace industry imports.
The new deal was announced on the sidelines of the summit. Trump and Starmer did however note that negotiations are still ongoing on the steel production sector.
Trump insists that the deal with the UK is “fair for both”, adding that he expects it to produce a lot of jobs and income for both nations. Starmer took a similar tone to Trump as he addressed reporters, saying the deal is a sign of strength and a “very good day” for both countries.
Reaching an agreement is significant as Trump has threatened much of the world with substantial import tariffs that have caused market instability and heightened the risk of a global trade war.
Although he has backed off on several of his suggested tariffs, he has persisted in indicating that officials from his administration are vigorously engaged in negotiations for new trade agreements with numerous nations, even though very few have come to fruition.
The agreement follows the leaders’ announcement in May, revealing that they had reached a framework for a trade pact. This pact aims to significantly reduce US import taxes on British cars, steel, and aluminium in exchange for enhanced access to the British market for US goods, such as beef and ethanol.
However, the agreement reached on Monday exclusively addresses British cars and aerospace materials, with further negotiations required for steel.
London says the new deal would give British firms, such as Rolls-Royce, which produces engines for aeroplanes as well as high-end luxury vehicles, a significant boost, receiving an exemption from the initially imposed 10% tariffs.
Trump: G7 should expand to host Russia and China
The US president also stirred controversy at the summit, suggesting that the G7 should expand to the G8 including Russia, or even the G9 which would include China.
Trump asserted that it was a “very big mistake” to remove Russia in 2014 after it unilaterally annexed Crimea, a move that preceded Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“The G7 used to be the G8. Barack Obama and a person named Trudeau didn’t want to have Russia in,” Trump said, referring to Justin Trudeau, who was elected Canada’s prime minister a year after Russia’s removal. Stephen Harper was the Canadian prime minister at the time.
“I think you wouldn’t have a war right now if you had Russia in, and you wouldn’t have a war right now if Trump were president four years ago,” Trump said. “They threw Russia out, which I claimed was a very big mistake, even though I wasn’t in politics then.”
Asked by a reporter if China should also be added, Trump said: “It’s not a bad idea. I don’t mind that if somebody wants to see just China coming in.”
The US president said it’s important for world leaders to be able to speak with one another at summits.
“Putin speaks to me. He doesn’t speak to anybody else,» Trump said. «He doesn’t want to talk because he was very insulted when he got thrown out of the G8, as I would be, as you would be, as anybody would be.”
