French hosts signal no joint communique as Ukraine and Iran disputes persist
Secretary of State Marco Rubio leaves this weekend for a Group of 7 foreign ministers meeting in France, the State Department said Friday — his first international trip since Tuesday’s midterm elections dealt Republicans a severe blow and handed Democrats control of Congress.
The losses, which the Associated Press’ report tied to policies including the Iran war, raised questions about how the Trump administration will respond after Democrats seized control of Congress. The meetings give Rubio plenty of opportunities to explain whether President Donald Trump will adjust an approach to allies and foes that has often been aggressive.
Rubio is seen by many as presenting a gentler side of Trump’s approach to the world. He and his aides have vehemently denied speculation that he might leave the administration early to prepare for a 2028 presidential run.
The G7 sessions on Monday and Tuesday follow a larger diplomatic gathering Rubio hosted just last weekend in Atlanta for G20 foreign ministers. That meeting, which included Russia and China, produced little consensus on the major issues before it and ended without a joint communique — only a chairman’s statement from Rubio.
The G7 comprises the world’s biggest industrialized democracies rather than the 20 largest global economies, and its members — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, alongside the United States — are all U.S. allies. Yet the differences that prevented broad agreements in Atlanta will likely confound the top diplomats again in Paris, especially on global security. The French hosts have signaled that this meeting also will not produce a joint communique.
In Paris, the ministers will again confront unresolved world crises, including the Iran and Russia-Ukraine wars and deteriorating energy and food security. The French hosts, who have invited Brazil, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine to participate in some discussions, list priorities including Ukraine, Iran and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.
The agenda also reaches the broader Middle East — including Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Lebanon and Syria — as well as Africa, the Indo-Pacific, China, Venezuela, Cuba and Haiti. The French foreign ministry said the hosts will convene a meeting on artificial intelligence and a separate session on support for Ukraine.
Trump and his administration have rattled the nerves of G7 partners on support for Ukraine, NATO and defense spending, trade and tariffs, the Iran war and opposition to the International Criminal Court. Every member of the group except Japan sits in NATO; Japan maintains a separate treaty alliance with the United States.
Trump has scaled back U.S. military assistance to Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia. He has repeatedly suggested that the United States might not come to the defense of a NATO member under attack unless all allies step up their defense spending, and he has proposed reducing the U.S. military footprint in Europe — a presence that has reassured the continent since World War II.
The International Criminal Court, the world’s first war crimes tribunal, counts every G7 member except the United States among its members. The Associated Press reported that the American military presence also plays a role in the administration’s battle to dismantle the court. The Trump administration has imposed severe sanctions on the court and a number of its employees, and next year it could add penalties on governments, companies and individuals that do business with the court.
The European Union, meanwhile, is considering what is called a “blocking statute” that would protect EU institutions from U.S. secondary sanctions — a step the Trump administration has said would be hostile and carry potential consequences for relations with the United States.