OTTAWA (Reuters) -The Group of Seven nations are still discussing a possible joint statement to mark the third anniversary of the war between Ukraine and Russia, Canada’s foreign minister said on Monday, noting a disagreement with Washington’s position on the conflict.
“We’ve been working, indeed, with the Europeans and Americans. We are still having some conversations,” Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly told a virtual briefing with reporters when asked about the status of a joint G7 statement.
Canada holds the G7 presidency in 2025.
Washington has been objecting to language on “Russian aggression” in any joint G7 statement on the war, Reuters reported last week.
“It is a fluid situation and we’ll continue to engage, but I’ve been foreign minister now for three years and a half, and it’s never been so intense in terms of diplomatic engagement, to say the least,” Joly added.
The United States, since President Donald Trump returned to the White House last month, has taken a less-friendly stance on Ukraine and pushed for a quick deal to end the war.
European officials have been left flat-footed by Trump’s decisions to hold talks with Russia, spurning both Kyiv and Europe, and by his administration’s warning that Washington was no longer primarily focused on Europe’s security.
“Canada and other countries don’t agree with the position that the U.S. advocated at the UN, particularly the resolution that they brought up,” Joly said, referring to a U.S. bid to tone down the U.N. General Assembly’s stance on the war.
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Stephen Coates)
