15 hours ago
US President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early due to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. He warned people to evacuate Tehran and reiterated Iran should have signed a nuclear deal with the United States. He also claimed a ceasefire offer was made.
US President Donald Trump urged everyone to immediately evacuate Tehran. (File Photo)
New Delhi,UPDATED: Jun 17, 2025 06:34 IST
US President Donald Trump is departing the Group of Seven summit in Canada a day early, citing escalating tensions in the Middle East, the White House announced Monday. "I have to be back early — for obvious reasons," he told reporters.
White House Press Secretary Karoline confirmed it in X: "Much was accomplished, but due to developments in the Middle East, President Trump will leave tonight after dinner with Heads of State."
US President Donald Trump on Monday urged everyone to immediately evacuate Tehran, and reiterated that Iran should have signed a nuclear deal with the United States.
Amid the ongoing G7 summit in Canada, Trump posted on Truth Social: "Iran should have signed the "deal" I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life. Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!"
TRUMP DOES NOT INTEND TO SIGN JOINT G7 STATEMENT ON IRAN
Meanwhile, a US official said on Monday that President Donald Trump would not sign a draft statement from Group of Seven leaders calling for de-escalation of the Israel-Iran conflict.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump's departure was positive, given the objective of securing a ceasefire in the Middle East. Macron said on Monday that US President Donald Trump had made an offer for a ceasefire between 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," Macron told reporters at the G7.
G7 leaders from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US, along with the European Union, convened in the resort area of Kananaskis in the Canadian Rockies until Tuesday.
The G7 has struggled to find unity over conflicts in Ukraine and between Israel and Iran as Trump overtly expressed support for Russian President Vladimir Putin and has imposed tariffs on many of the allies present.
Speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier, Trump said the former Group of Eight had been wrong to kick out Russia in 2014 after it annexed Crimea.
"This was a big mistake," Trump said, adding he believed Russia would not have invaded Ukraine in 2022 had Putin not been ejected.
"Putin speaks to me. He doesn't speak to anybody else ... he's not a happy person about it. I can tell you that he basically doesn't even speak to the people that threw him out, and I agree with him," Trump said.
Though Trump stopped short of saying Russia should be reinstated in the group, his comments had raised doubts about how much Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy can achieve when he is schedule to meet the leaders on Tuesday.
"It was a rough start," said Josh Lipsky, a former senior IMF official who now chairs the international economics department at the Atlantic Council.
Leaders have prepared several draft documents, including on migration, artificial intelligence, and critical minerals, Reuters reported. None of them have been approved by the United States, however, according to sources briefed on the documents. Without Trump, it is unclear if there will be any declarations, a European diplomat said.
With inputs from Agencies
Published By:
Rivanshi Rakhrai
Published On:
Jun 17, 2025
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