(France24)
US President Donald Trump renewed calls on Tuesday to let Russia join the G7 -- thus making it the G8 again -- group of advanced industrialised countr
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump noted that his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama, had wanted Russia out of what used to be the G8 "because Putin outsmarted him”.
“But I think it’s much more appropriate to have Russia in. It should be the G8 because a lot of the things we talk about have to do with Russia,” Trump said, just days before a G7 summit -- minus Russia -- in Biarritz, France.
Trump added, “I could certainly see it being the G8 again. If someone would make that motion, I would be disposed to think about it favourably.... "They should let Russia come back in, because we should have Russia at the negotiating table."
Russia pushed out after Crimea
Russia was pushed out of the G8 in 2014 because of its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.
It was not the first time Trump has floated the idea of Russia getting back together with the G7, which groups the United States, Germany, Japan, France, Britain, Italy and Canada. Read more