Trump says Russian Federation should be let back into the G-7

US President Donald Trump has been escalating a trade battle by imposing punitive tariffs on the US’s closest allies in Canada and the EU.

The Crimea annexation in 2014 resulted in the leading world powers excluding Russian Federation from the club and becoming the G-7 again.

Ms Merkel and Mr Trump also had a brief conversation at the summit but no bilateral meeting.

In a tense phone call with Trudeau on Wednesday over the recent tariffs, Trump reportedly jabbed at Canada by accusing the country of burning down the executive residence in Washington.

Mr. Macron, feuding with Mr. Trump over US steel and aluminum tariffs on the European Union, tweeted that he and the other six leaders were prepared to turn their backs on Mr. Trump at the summit.

Mr. Tusk’s own comments about the steel tariffs made it clear that he can’t quite believe the United States is undermining the trade system it designed.

Earlier Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lashed out at Trump for imposing tariffs on their steel and aluminium industries. He did not elaborate.

Economics tops the agenda, although the meetings now always branch off to cover major global issues.

The annual G-7 (Group of Seven) meeting is scheduled to take place in Quebec, Canada, on Friday and Saturday.

“We know certainly that there will be frank and sometimes hard discussions around the G7 table, particularly with the USA president on tariffs”, Trudeau told reporters.

Italy’s new prime minster, Giuseppe Conte, agreed with Trump’s take. Conte said in a tweet that the move would be “in everyone’s interest”.

“Russia is focused on other formats apart from the G-7”, Peskov said, according to the Sputnik news agency. The G-8 was downgraded back to a G-7 following Putin’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.

Trump is now engaged in a series of trade wars with numerous countries in Europe, North America, and Asia, which could impact the flow of hundreds of billions of dollars in goods, including automobiles, agricultural products, and technology.

Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland called the tariffs “illegal and absolutely unjustified”.

The G7 leaders were planning to press him to lift those duties in their opening sessions Friday, egged on by Trump’s early morning tweets complaining about unfair trade and Canada’s supply management.

“When we can underscore and we see there’s a lot of pressure with the United States, perhaps he will revise his position”.

Japanese officials have similarly hit back at proposed tariffs on auto imports, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe saying last month that the country simply “can’t accept this”.

Sitting down with Trudeau, Trump said “the relationship is probably better, as good or better than it has hever been and I think we’ll get to something beneficial to Canada and the US”.

Trump’s rejection of the global climate accord and Iran nuclear deal, supported by the European Union and Canada is going to be another flashpoint in the increasingly acrimonious relationship between Washington and its Western allies.

Iran is also a big sticking point.

With a cool reception all but assured, Trump has complained to aides about even having to attend the meeting, especially since his summit with Kim is just days away. This angered the other signatories who have since sought to shore it up.

Previous G7 meetings have seen huge protests, and about 8,000 soldiers and police officers are expected to be on hand during the Quebec event.