The G7 countries failed to project unity towards Ukraine during the summit. President Volodymyr Zelensky left the summit with only additional support from Canada. However, the countries did manage to issue a statement on the Iran issue.
The G7 countries had difficulty finding a common position on the war in Ukraine. For example, US President Donald Trump expressed his support for his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
He also allegedly blocked a “strong statement” on the war. Trump would want to prevent the harsh tone from complicating future negotiations with Moscow. It is unclear whether such a statement actually existed. Earlier, a Canadian official spoke of a powerful statement, but this was later refuted by a spokesman for Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Although Canada pledged an additional support package worth 1.27 billion euros for Ukraine and the United Kingdom also made commitments, Zelensky is somewhat disappointed in the G7 summit. “Diplomacy is in crisis,” he said. The president hoped that the countries could pressure Trump to give Ukraine more weapons and use his influence to end the war.
Nevertheless, the G7 countries expressed their appreciation for Trump’s commitment to peace in Ukraine. The leaders also agreed that Ukraine has committed to an unconditional ceasefire and that Russia must do the same. They therefore say they are exploring “all options to maximize pressure on Russia.”
Quick statement on Iran issue
The war in Ukraine was not the only item on the agenda during the G7 summit. The escalated tensions between Israel and Iran were also an item. “We have issued a statement given the exceptional, rapidly changing situation in Iran,” Carney said during a closing press conference.
Trump also agreed to that statement. The US president had left the summit early because he had to discuss the escalated conflict. As a result, he missed a planned meeting with Zelensky, among others.
Trump supports Israel and wants to “end the escalated tensions as soon as possible.” It is not known how he wants to tackle this, but on Tuesday he spoke of “more than a ceasefire.” For example, news site Axios reported that Trump, during a consultation with his National Security Council, would have spoken about possible participation of the US in the fight against Iran.
The conclusions of the consultation are not known, but Trump would consider military aid to Israel. According to The New York Times, there is a possibility that the Americans will help refuel Israeli fighter jets in the air so that they can be active over Iran for longer.
On Wednesday, the American newspaper wrote that Iran has put missiles and other military resources on standby against American military targets in the Middle East. The country would thereby prepare for American interference in the conflict.