Foreign ministers of leading Western democracies sought to show a united front in Canada on Thursday after seven weeks of rising tensions between American allies and US President Donald Trump over his upending of foreign policy on Ukraine and imposition of tariffs.
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The Group of Seven ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, along with the European Union, convened in the remote tourist town of La Malbaie, nestled in the Quebec hills, for meetings on Thursday and Friday that in the past have been broadly consensual.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed his colleagues on talks on Tuesday with Ukraine in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where Kyiv said it was ready to support a 30-day ceasefire deal.
But officials said news of ambiguous comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin had broken during the session, leaving delegates unclear where things stood.
In the run-up to the first G7 meeting of Canada’s presidency, the crafting of an agreed all-encompassing final statement had been tough, but diplomats said the atmosphere since had been positive and candid.
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There was hope for an accord, something they said was vital to show unity. Should they not agree, they could opt for a chair statement from Canada that summarises what was discussed.