US Threatens to Withdraw Support for G7 Statement

The G7 is on the brink of failing to agree on a joint statement marking the anniversary of the three-year war in Ukraine, and the United States has now threatened to withdraw its support for the entire statement.

Diplomats have been seeking a compromise since last week after the United States balked at language condemning Russia, Bloomberg reported. Washington also disagrees over whether to impose additional energy sanctions to push Moscow to negotiate a lasting peace.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attended the G7 meeting via video conference from Kiev alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the rotating president, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, both of whom were visiting Ukraine for the third anniversary of the Russian invasion.

"The traditional meeting of G7 leaders with the participation of Ukraine is a very important signal of support for our country and our people," he wrote in X, speaking of "a productive meeting, with principled words from the majority of our partners."

"Today we discussed the need for security guarantees for Ukraine and concrete ways to ensure the end of Russian aggression and prevent new ones," he added, reiterating that he counts "a lot on the unity of the world: Europe, America, all parts of the world and nations that want to live in peace, on the basis of predictable rules and international law."

Emmanuel Macron, for his part, arrived at the White House for the video call with the other G7 leaders. The French president and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, will then have a bilateral meeting, at 12:00 local time, 18:00 in Italy, followed by a press conference at 14:00 local time, 20:00 in Italy.

"The call was perfect." This is how Macron responded to a question from journalists following the video call with the other G7 leaders. As for Donald Trump's welcome, the head of the Elysée responded that the American president was "very friendly, as always. We had the G7 video conference in the Oval Office and then we had an initial discussion, I will be back shortly."

The video call between the G7 leaders, which Trump and Macron followed from the White House, ended after just over an hour. The French president then left the executive headquarters to return to Blair House, the annex opposite Trump's residence.

Macron praised Ukraine for its "courage" in the face of the Russian "aggressor," before meeting Donald Trump at the White House. "For three years, Ukraine has been fighting with respectable courage against an aggressor: Russia. For its sovereignty and freedom. Our support for Ukraine will remain unwavering. I am in Washington to reiterate this and move forward with President Trump and our allies," he said.