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Donald Trump said he would leave the G7 summit in Canada early to manage America’s response to the war between Israel and Iran as world leaders called for a resolution of the conflict and a “broader de-escalation” in the Middle East.
The joint statement agreed late on Monday came after a day of intense diplomacy in the mountain resort of Kananaskis. President Trump had initially resisted signing up to the text and issued increasingly hawkish statements on the war, including a warning to evacuate Tehran.
“We have been consistently clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,” the G7 leaders said. “We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza,” they added, pledging “co-ordination” to maintain the “stability” of global energy markets.
The statement was agreed as Trump prepared to depart the summit a day earlier than planned. The US president will miss the final sessions of the gathering on Tuesday including one on the war in Ukraine with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“I have to be back as soon as I can,” Trump told reporters late on Monday as G7 leaders gathered for a group photograph. “I wish I could stay for tomorrow, but they understand. This is big stuff.”
Senior Trump administration officials said the US remained in a “defensive” posture in the Middle East, suggesting Iran still had time to reach an agreement with Washington over its nuclear programme.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump told G7 leaders that discussions were under way to obtain a ceasefire between Iran and Israel.
Trump “spoke several minutes ago about ongoing discussions, which is a good thing”, Macron told reporters after the White House’s announcement that Trump would depart the G7 summit.
“An offer was indeed made, mainly to achieve a ceasefire and to launch broader discussions.”
Iran has said it will only agree to negotiate an end to the war with Israel and resume talks over its nuclear programme if Israeli forces halt their bombing campaign, according to diplomats.
Israel has continued to launch waves of missiles into Iran since it began its attack early on Friday, including a strike on IRIB, an Iranian state broadcaster on Monday. Iran has retaliated by launching several volleys of missiles across Israel. Both sides have sustained casualties.
“Iran should have signed the ‘deal’ I told them to sign. What a shame, and waste of human life. Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again!” Trump wrote on Truth Social earlier on Monday. “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran !”, he added.
Trump’s comments on Monday were cheered on by prominent Republican Iran hawks, including Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina senator, who were satisfied that Trump had thrown down the gauntlet on Tehran. Trump has not ruled out US military involvement alongside Israel if needed.
“Iran played the same old game with the wrong guy. God bless Israel, God bless the United States and God bless President Trump,” Graham wrote on X.
Trump pointedly criticised Tucker Carlson, the firebrand media host close to the US president, who has been arguing against further US involvement on the side of Israel.
“Somebody please explain to kooky Tucker Carlson that IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!” he wrote.
Any direct US military action risks widening the rift within Trump’s base over national security, after he campaigned on a platform of global peacemaking rather than interventionism.
Democrats have already warned Trump that he needed congressional authorisation if US forces were to participate in any operations against Iran.
“There is no imminent threat to America from Iran. He cannot take this action without congressional authorisation,” Chris Murphy, the Democratic senator from Connecticut, wrote on X.
In recent days the US has built up its presence in the Middle East, deploying additional military assets to the region.
The Pentagon on Monday sent the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group to the region “to sustain our defensive posture and safeguard American personnel”, according to a US defence official.
The strike group, which consists of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and three guided-missile destroyers, had been in the South China Sea, according to MarineTraffic, a ship tracking website.
US defence secretary Pete Hegseth said he had directed the deployment of additional capabilities “to the United States Central Command Area of Responsibility” over the weekend, according to his post on X on Monday. Centcom is responsible for military operations throughout the Middle East.
The US Navy, under US European Command, also “continues to conduct operations in the Eastern Mediterranean in support of US national security objectives”, the defence official added.
Should Iran attack the US in any way, Trump has vowed on his Truth Social platform that “the full strength and might of the U.S. Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before”.