G7 allies work to put Trump’s attention back on Ukraine as war drags on
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- G7 leaders convened in Evian-les-Bains, France, for their first full summit day, with Ukrainian President Zelensky joining a 75-minute working session where they agreed to ratchet up sanctions on Russia's oil and natural gas sectors.
- G7 leaders committed to providing additional air defense capabilities to Ukraine, a role increasingly filled by France and other European allies as the U.S. under Trump has cut back aid to Kyiv.
- The United Kingdom announced new sanctions targeting Russia's 'shadow fleet' of oil and gas tankers and Moscow's sanctions-evasion finance networks, including vessels recently purchased to transport LNG from the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project.
- Russia launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles at Ukraine's biggest cities hours before the summit opened, killing 11 people and setting fire to a religious landmark, following separate Zelensky-Putin phone calls with Trump on his 80th birthday.
- Trump downplayed the war's impact on the U.S. but called it 'ridiculous,' reiterating his pledge to do 'whatever I can' — a shift from his 2024 campaign claim that he could end the conflict within 24 hours of taking office.
- Ukraine officially launched European Union membership negotiations on Monday, a process requiring years of political reforms, though NATO membership remains blocked by the Trump administration.
- Trump voiced frustration with Israel's continued hostilities against Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, telling reporters the Israeli operations 'throw a negative light on the big deal' with Iran.
Why it matters: With the U.S. cutting aid to Ukraine, France and European allies are now the largest military and financial backers of Kyiv — meaning the G7's new sanctions push and air defense commitments come almost entirely from allies rather than Washington. Russia answered the diplomatic push with its largest pre-summit barrage yet, killing 11, signaling Moscow is unmoved by the West's rhetorical escalation.
