La Malbaie (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Foreign ministers of G7 countries meet in Canada on March 13, 2025, after seven weeks of growing tensions between U.S. partners and President Donald Trump over his revision of foreign policy on Ukraine and setting of tariffs.
The Group of Seven ministers from the UK, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and the United States, along with the European Union, meet in the remote tourist town of La Malbaie, situated in the Quebec hills for two days of sessions that in the past have broadly been agreeable on the issues they face.
What are the main topics of discussion at the G7?
As reported by Reuters, leading the agenda for Washington’s allies will be getting a debriefing on U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s discussions with Kyiv in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where Ukraine stated it was ready to back a 30-day ceasefire deal. But in the lead-up to the first G7 meeting of Canada’s presidency.
Trump’s decision to charge 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports immediately drew reciprocal actions from Canada and the EU, highlighting the tensions.
Why are European allies concerned about Trump’s Diplomacy?
G7 delegates said the positive consequence from Jeddah may at least ease discussions on Ukraine. The United States, since Trump’s inauguration on January 20, has taken a less-friendly perspective on Ukraine, forcing a quick agreement to end the war, urged European partners to take on more of the limitation without openly supporting their role in future talks, and warmed Washington’s ties with Moscow.
Trump has indicated the G8 might be restored with the return of Moscow 11 years after its membership in the group was discontinued over its annexation of Crimea. On the other hand, connections between the United States and Canada are declining, thanks to Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on all imports from Canada and his continued musing regarding annexing the land to make it the 51st U.S. state.
“We’re going to be focused in the G7 on all of those things. That’s what the meeting is about. It is not a meeting about how we’re going to take over Canada,”
He told reporters, stressing how offbeat their ties have become.
European ambassadors said they wished to use the G7 to assess directly how much impact Rubio has on U.S. foreign policy. Trump has utilized a wide array of officials not connected to the State Department in talks varying from Ukraine to the situation in the Middle East, where partners have been shocked by some of the erratic statements coming from Washington.
