G7 Summit in France: Iran and Ukraine Top the Agenda
Al Jazeera Staff
G7 leaders meet in France to tackle U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations and the Ukraine conflict. French President Macron prioritises a solid deal, while European leaders push for tighter pressure on Russia. Preliminary U.S.-Iran deal opens 60 days of talks.
Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) major industrialised nations convened in Évian-les-Bains, France, with the main focus on the agreement between the United States and Iran as well as the Russia-Ukraine conflict. French President Emmanuel Macron, the summit host, said the priority is to secure a deal that is “solid, serious and completed”.
During a working lunch on June 15, leaders focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, including a French-UK-led naval mission, and identifying alternative energy routes independent of that waterway. U.S. President Donald Trump declared the Strait of Hormuz would be “fully open” by Friday, when a formal signing ceremony takes place in Geneva.
A preliminary U.S.-Iran agreement was digitally signed on Monday (June 14), opening a 60-day phase for complex negotiations over Iran’s high-grade enriched uranium and the lifting of sanctions. President Trump, who arrived in France on Monday evening, assessed the Iran deal as “going to be very successful”.
Ahead of the summit, the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Britain and Canada issued a joint statement congratulating the U.S., the Iranian government and mediators on “a diplomatic breakthrough”. They stressed the need for detailed talks and swift implementation of the agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers. President Macron said France and Western partners are “ready to act very quickly” to support a peaceful reopening of the strait.
On Ukraine, European leaders sought to convince President Trump that previous U.S. proposals to end the war were too favourable to Moscow. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended the first session under the theme “building peace in Ukraine” and may meet Mr. Trump separately. Mr. Zelenskyy had offered to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at the summit, but Putin rejected the proposal as “pointless” without a ready-made agreement.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that Ukraine is “holding the front line and even retaking some territory” while developing the capacity to strike strategic targets deep inside Russia. She also argued that Russia’s war economy has “never been so weak” under the pressure of sanctions. Russia-Ukraine talks remain deadlocked as both sides continue to escalate attacks.
Diplomats said Europe wants to signal readiness for dialogue with Putin while simultaneously tightening sanctions on Russia and increasing military support for Ukraine, emphasising that Moscow, not Kyiv, is blocking progress. President Trump said he had good conversations with both Mr. Zelenskyy and Mr. Putin, and believed both are “open to doing something about the war”.
