Leaders of the world’s seven wealthiest nations convened Monday at a resort along a French lake, arriving just as the United States and Iran jointly announced they had reached an early-stage agreement to bring their war to a close.
The June 15-17 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, will put the Iran situation front and center, but world leaders will also be working through other pressing matters — including the conflict in Ukraine, addressing lopsided global economic conditions, and finding sources for critical minerals that don’t rely so heavily on China.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in Evian-les-Bains Monday for the gathering. His attendance was welcomed by French officials, particularly after Trump departed last year’s G7 summit in Canada ahead of schedule. Many fellow G7 leaders have grown increasingly cautious about the United States, as Trump’s unpredictable moves on the world stage have shaken up the Middle East, international trade, and diplomatic relationships — raising broader doubts about America’s dedication to the global framework it helped build after World War II.
During the summit, Trump is scheduled to meet with leaders from the Middle East and to hold a working session with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Tuesday. That meeting comes as Russian military progress in Ukraine has stalled and Kyiv is pushing its allies for more financial and military support.
Zelenskiy’s negotiating position has strengthened since Trump famously told him in the Oval Office last year: “You don’t have the cards.” However, Zelenskiy may find it harder to win expanded U.S. backing as Trump focuses on putting the Iran conflict behind him — a conflict that has hurt Trump’s approval ratings at home.
On the Iran deal, G7 leaders are eager to learn the specifics. A formal memorandum of understanding is scheduled to be signed this Friday in Switzerland, though the exact terms had not been publicly released. Trump announced that the Strait of Hormuz — a critical waterway for global oil and gas shipments that Iran has effectively closed off for months — would reopen Friday, and that he had directed an end to the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council released a statement saying that military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon, would permanently cease beginning Monday night. Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said a broader agreement would be worked out over a 60-day ceasefire window, which would include sanctions relief for Iran. Sources had previously told Reuters that Iran’s nuclear program would be part of those follow-up discussions.
The United Arab Emirates, which suffered direct harm from the war, along with key mediating nations Qatar and Egypt, have also been invited to participate in the G7 summit.
French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed Trump on Monday. For Macron, this summit carries special significance as a diplomatic highlight of his second and final term, which ends next year. While Macron is increasingly viewed as a weakened figure within France, he still commands influence internationally — and managed to secure Trump’s agreement to attend a lavish dinner at the Palace of Versailles on Wednesday.
Macron has used France’s leadership of the G7 to push for action on global economic imbalances, a topic long of interest to Washington, ahead of the United States taking over leadership of both the G20 this year and the G7 next year. France has characterized the problem as a shared one: China produces too much, the U.S. consumes too much, and Europe invests too little. Brazil, India, Kenya, and South Korea were also invited to join the conversation, and Macron has called on China to increase its domestic consumption.
