Trump calls for return to G8 format with Russia at table

16.06.2025 20:10

Ukrinform

In his opening statements at the G7 summit in Canada, U.S. President Donald Trump emphasized that he considers it necessary to return to the G8 format with the participation of Russia, thus repeating his long-standing rhetoric that is in line with the Kremlin’s interest.

This was discussed during the opening remarks on Monday at Donald Trump's meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Ukrinform's staff correspondent reports.

"The G7 used to be the G8. Barack Obama and a person named Trudeau didn’t want to have Russia in, and I would say that was a mistake, because I think you wouldn’t have a war right now if you had Russia in, and you wouldn’t have a war right now if Trump were President four years ago,” the head of the White House noted.

He suggested too much time is spent on talking about Russia, which is no longer at the table, “so it makes life more complicated”.

At the same time, the US president gave an ambiguous answer to the question of whether he believes that Putin should have been present at the current summit in Canada.

“I'm not saying he [Putin] should at this point, because too much water's gone over the dam, maybe, but it was a big mistake [to kick Russia out of the G8],” Trump noted.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed the idea of Russia's return to the international market despite its continued full-scale war in Europe.

Photo: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg