Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Driving commercial and political engagement between Asia, the Middle East and Europe
As G7 leaders gather in Quebec for the 44th G7 summit, US President Donald Trump has already set a combative tone for the talks.
Tweeting ahead of the summit, President Trump said he was “getting ready to go to the G-7 in Canada to fight for our country on Trade (we have the worst trade deals ever made)…”.
According to The Australian, Trump is considering not signing the traditional G7 communique following the meeting, in order to highlight the US belief that the current global trade rules need to be revised.
France and Canada, meanwhile, have urged other G7 members not to capitulate to US pressure and to resist tariffs imposed on them last week.
The Guardian reports that French President Emmanuel Macron called on other G7 leaders not to ‘water down a joint communique at the end of the summit, at the expense of shared values, simply in an effort to win Trump’s signature.’
The French President, speaking alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, added that a “G6 plus one” outcome was possible.
This led to another tweet from President Trump this morning, in which he accused Prime Minister Trudeau of being “indignant.” The President added, “he doesn’t bring up the fact that they charge us up to 300% on dairy — hurting our Farmers, killing our Agriculture!”
President Trump will be the last leader to arrive at the summit, taking place across 8 and 9 June, and the first to leave when he heads to Singapore early on Saturday for the much-anticipated meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Maintaining the US’s combative stance in a briefing at the White House on Wednesday, Larry Kudlow, senior Trump economic advisor, said that the US should not be held responsible for increasing trade conflicts with American allies.
Prior to the summit, Japanese President Abe met with Trump in the US to discuss both trade and North Korea, whilst French President Macron met PM Trudeau in order to reaffirm their multilateral stance.
The G7 summit is meant to present an opportunity for G7 leaders to build a consensus and set trends around some of the most challenging global issues. This year there are serious challenges to building a consensus, as all other G7 members – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK and the EU – have agreed their unanimous concern and disappointment over recent US tariffs levelled against them.
G7 2018 host Canada, along with Mexico and the EU, have already announced retaliatory tariffs. Most nations, however, cannot afford an escalation that could damage the world economy. As The Guardian reports, the US alone accounts for more than half of the G7’s total combined GDP.
