G7 a chance to get US at the same table on Ukraine, Macron says
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The G7 summit this week will be a chance to show U.S. President Donald Trump that Europe and other allies are doing their share on Ukraine, and to see how much the grouping can keep working together to support Kyiv, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview on June 15.
The U.S. has significantly reduced its support for Ukraine since Trump took office, cutting off its financial assistance and providing Russia several months of critical sanctions relief.
Ahead of the G7 meeting in Evian, French TV channel TF1 asked Macron whether the U.S. is still a trustworthy ally. Macron defended Washington's support for Ukraine, which goes back to the beginning of the all-out war.
He mentioned that Washington continues to provide arms, which are paid by NATO, and that it shares intelligence with Ukraine.
The balance of support, however, has shifted, according to the French president. The Europeans, the Canadians, the Japanese, the Australians, the New Zealanders, are all doing that, Macron added.
The G7 is an opportunity to discuss further support for Ukraine with Trump, he said, bringing the U.S. "to the same table as us."
"Ukraine resisted (Russia) a lot better than we all thought it would," Macron added.
Now, the G7's priorities must be to "reinforce the pressure on Russia, for example against the shadow fleet," Macron suggested.
The French president also said that in addition to having Ukraine and Russia directly talking to each other, both the Americans and the Europeans must be there.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 15 that he had proposed meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France to discuss ending Moscow's war against Ukraine.
Speaking to reporters in Kyiv, Zelensky said Ukraine had sought to arrange a meeting involving key Western leaders in an effort to revive stalled peace negotiations.
"We sent a message expressing our willingness to meet with Putin during the G7 summit because (U.S. President Donald) Trump and (French President Emmanuel) Macron will be there — so it's the Europeans plus the U.S.," Zelensky said.
Zelensky and Trump are expected to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit on June 16.
