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Donald Trump called for Russia to be re-admitted to the G7 as he openly sparred with his allies on Friday, lashing out at their trade practices before travelling to meet them at the summit in Canada.
As he prepared to leave for the meeting, the US president told reporters in Washington that Moscow should be allowed to “come back in” even as he insisted that he had been that country’s “worst nightmare”. Russia was ejected from the G8 grouping in 2014 following the country’s annexation of Crimea.
He added: “Whether you like it or not, and it may not be politically correct, we have a world to run and in the G7, which used to be the G8, they threw Russia out. They should let Russia come back in because we should have Russia at the negotiating table.”
Mr Trump’s comments were almost immediately backed up by Giuseppe Conte, the newly-minted prime minister of Italy’s populist government. “I agree with President @realDonaldTrump: Russia should re-enter the G8. It’s in everyone’s interests,” he wrote.
The anti-establishment Five Star Movement and the far-right League, the two components of Italy’s governing coalition, have called for an “opening” towards Russia in foreign policy, and an elimination of sanctions against Moscow.
The US president’s provocative comments about Russia and some of his fellow G7 leaders followed a warning from French president Emmanuel Macron that the US is set to be isolated at the summit. It highlight one of the most serious and open rifts the informal group of advanced economies has seen since its origins in the 1970s.
Mr Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on other G7 nations’ exports of aluminium and steel has provoked a furious response from America’s trading partners — but the president attempted to turn the tables on partners including Emmanuel Macron of France and G7 host Justin Trudeau of Canada before his departure by accusing them of imposing “massive” tariffs on the US.
Earlier on Friday Mr Trump tweeted: “Canada charges the US a 270% tariff on Dairy Products! They didn’t tell you that, did they? Not fair to our farmers!” He added: “Looking forward to straightening out unfair Trade Deals with the G-7 countries. If it doesn’t happen, we come out even better!”
The US currently has a trade deal with only one of the G7 economies — Canada, which is part of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Trade with the rest of the G7 economies is governed by World Trade Organization rules.
While Canada charges a high tariff on dairy imports, 99 per cent of the goods traded between the US and Canada are duty-free under Nafta’s rules.
As he left the White House to travel to Quebec for the G7 summit on Friday Mr Trump also renewed a threat to pull out of Nafta if he could not strike a new trade deal with Canada.
On Thursday Mr Trump accused Mr Macron and Mr Trudeau of imposing “massive” tariffs on the US and imposing non-monetary obstacles to sales of its products. Mr Trump’s comments came after sharp criticism of his tariffs on steel and aluminium from the French president and the Canadian prime minister, who is hosting the G7 summit.
Underscoring the ill-feeling heading into the meetings in Quebec, Mr Macron used Twitter on Thursday afternoon to warn the president that the US’s G7 allies were willing to isolate Mr Trump because of their disagreements.
The White House later announced Mr Trump would leave the G7 summit early and fly straight to Singapore ahead of his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, White House spokeswoman, said Mr Trump would leave the gathering at 10.30am on Saturday, putting Everett Eissenstat, his deputy assistant for international economic affairs, in charge for the remaining sessions.
The skirmishes mark a bitter turn for relations among three leaders who have until recently made conspicuous efforts to get along.
But as the US and its G7 partners converge on Charlevoix, Canada, for two days of meetings, relations within the grouping are being defined by a profound rift over Mr Trump’s decision to hit key allies with tariffs justified on national security grounds. The stage was set last week when finance ministers from the six G7 nations — Japan, Germany, France, the UK, Italy and Canada — issued an extraordinary public rebuke of the US.
It is highly unusual to see such a public battle raging within the G7, especially given the leading role the US has traditionally played in the grouping. But Mr Trump’s moves towards protectionism and scepticism about a host of international bodies are contributing to an atmosphere of open mistrust within the western alliance.
Mr Macron did nothing to disguise the philosophical differences between the US and France, saying in his tweet: “The American President may not mind being isolated, but neither do we mind signing a 6 country agreement if need be.” Those six countries, he added, “represent values, they represent an economic market which has the weight of history behind it and which is now a true international force”.
Standing alongside Mr Macron earlier in Ottawa, Mr Trudeau joined his French counterpart in warning Mr Trump that his tariffs would backfire and hurt US workers. “American jobs are on the line because of his actions,” he said. “When we can underscore this, and we see there’s a lot of pressure within the US, perhaps he will revise his position.”
Mr Trump used Twitter to hit back at the two leaders, accusing them of pursuing unfair policies of their own. “Please tell Prime Minister Trudeau and President Macron that they are charging the US massive tariffs and create non-monetary barriers,” he said. “The EU trade surplus with the US is $151 Billion, and Canada keeps our farmers and others out. Look forward to seeing them tomorrow.”
US farmers have long complained about Canada’s agricultural sector and particularly its “supply management” system that protects domestic industries such as dairy and maple syrup from foreign competition.
The US and Canada also have a longstanding dispute over Canadian softwood lumber, which has intensified since the Trump administration put into place tariffs aimed at what it claims are illegal subsidies given to Canadian timber growers via the cheap access they have to state land.
At the same time, the EU and its $151bn annual trade surplus with the US have been a regular target of Mr Trump’s ire, with the president blaming higher EU car tariffs and other non-tariff trade barriers for keeping out US exports. The EU has for decades imposed limits on agricultural imports from the US via the use of regulatory barriers such as a de facto ban on genetically modified US grains and beef injected with hormones. The US argues that those agricultural barriers are unfair and not based on any scientific evidence.
