International: Skindle for G7? The most important thing about the Canada meeting

Overshadowed by a new war, the first summit of the G7 group has started in Canada since Donald Trump’s return to the White House. The last of the G7 bosses landed in Calgary on Sunday evening (local time). Today he should give a lecture on global economic policy at the first work meeting at the conference venue in Kananaskis in the Rocky Mountains.

The goal of such summit meetings is actually to find a uniform political line among the participants. But is that possible in this situation? The uncertainty and the potential for conflict at this year’s meeting of leading democratic economic powers are great – especially with a view to the Ukraine War and the new escalation in the Middle East.

The further the G7 countries drift apart in the great conflicts, the greater the risk that the round could lose their political importance. US President Trump has a penchant for alone and unexpected advances. This makes the consultations at the G7 summit difficult.

The expectations were already screwed down in advance, and there should be no joint declaration of final. But Trump, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, for whom it should become the first major international test, and still speak about important topics. With these aspects it should be particularly exciting:

The conflict between Israel and Iran

The new escalation in the Middle East is also very concerned about the G7 bosses. Many conversations should be about the question of how to prevent worse and the way back to conversations can be taken. Shortly before his departure to Canada, Trump said it was time that both sides agreed. There are good chances of it. At the same time, he said with a view to Israel and Iran: “Sometimes you have to fight it out.”

And the EU? In a declaration of the Member States published at the weekend, it says that Iran should never be allowed to gain a nuclear weapon. At the same time, it is made clear that permanent security can only be achieved from an EU perspective through diplomacy and not through military action. It is questionable whether the G7 partners can agree on a joint course or even a common diplomatic initiative.

So far, the G7 partners agreed that Russia can only be moved through a determined and strong support of Ukraine to the task of his war of aggression. The fact that the United States has no longer clearly pursued this line since Trump’s return to the White House has been a great concern for the other participants in the group for months. At the summit, the Europeans now want to try to bring him back to line.

It is now about promoting the negotiation process initiated by Trump about an armistice, said Merz before he departed to Canada. “Ukraine has developed suggestions for this, while Russia continues to play for a long time and brutally wage war.” In order to bring Moscow to the negotiating table, additional pressure is needed – through sanctions. The Europeans also hope for Trump.

On Tuesday, the Ukrainian President Wolodymyr Selenskyj is also expected at the summit, there should also be a meeting with him and Trump. He already asked the G7 round to increase the pressure on Russia in advance.

Dispute over tariffs, unity in coveted raw materials

The conversations about economic policy should also be pretty hooked at the summit. In the opinion of the other G7 countries, US President Trump clearly violates the principles of an open, liberal and regular economic order propagated by the group. The big question is how to provoke this without a great argument and a failure of the summit.

It is conceivable that the group concentrates in the working sessions on topics that still have common interests. For example, Member States want to become more independent of raw materials from states such as China – especially when it comes to substances like ores of the rare earths, which are important for energy saving applications or modern information and communication technologies.

What falls by the wayside

In addition to hosts Canada, the USA and Germany, the G7 of leading democratic industrial nations also belong to Japan, France, Italy, Great Britain and the European Union. The group also saw itself as a pioneer in the fight against climate change and poverty in the world.

Because of Trump’s disinterest in these topics, the round in these areas could become meaningless in the coming years. The organization Oxfam fears that the G7 development aid expenses for 2026 could decrease by 28 percent compared to 2024.

Against the background of Trump’s politics, a comprehensive joint declaration will also be dispensed with this year. In order not to make the G7 appear unable to act, host Canada wants to have several smaller statements adopted on undisputed topics. One of them is supposed to devote itself to the fight against forest fires. These are also an important topic for Trump – even if he repeatedly considered that they are promoted by climate change.

Partner program with gondola and chocolate

Merz’s Ms. Charlotte is also included in Kananaskis. This is a special feature of the G7 peaks, there is usually a program for the partners. Canada’s head of government and host Mark Carney also arrived accompanied by his wife Diana Fox. Charlotte Merz and the other accompaniment will then drive with a gondola to the summit of Sulphur Mountain and taste the chocolate of a local chocolatier, as a spokeswoman for the federal government announced.