G7 Summit Opens in France with Trump’s Iran Breakthrough Dominating High-Stakes Global Talks

President Donald Trump touched down in Évian-les-Bains on Monday for the 52nd G7 Summit , his first appearance at the gathering since the US-Iran war began, arriving with fresh momentum after announcing a deal aimed at ending the conflict. Despite recent criticism of Emmanuel Macron and other allies over the slow reopening of the Strait of Hormuz , Trump held a bilateral meeting with the French president soon after landing.

Macron, this year’s host, had also invited Egypt, Qatar, and the UAE to join a Tuesday session focused squarely on the Middle East.

Speaking alongside Macron, Trump said the Strait of Hormuz is already partially open and will be fully reopened by Friday, when the US and Iran are due to formally sign a memorandum of understanding . US officials confirmed that Trump, Vice President JD Vance , and Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf had digitally signed the agreement a day earlier. Trump indicated he would likely skip the Geneva signing, leaving Vance to attend in his place.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif , who played a key mediating role in the talks, also confirmed the Friday signing. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi struck a more cautious note, citing Tehran’s “history of broken promises, non-implementation and agreements being torn up,” even while acknowledging a signing was likely.

Complications persist over Lebanon , where Israel continues strikes against Hezbollah. Israel’s defence minister has cast doubt on cooperation, while oil futures fell around 4 percent following the announcement.

Emmanuel Macron said the summit would assess the agreement’s implications, support for Lebanon, the durability of the Hormuz reopening, and progress on a nuclear and ballistic accord with Iran. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said sanctions relief for Iran would depend on credible, verifiable behavioural change.

Ukraine also featured prominently. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has no bilateral scheduled with Trump but will join a broader G7 working session, with Washington not listing Ukraine among its top summit priorities. Von der Leyen said Kyiv would soon receive the first tranche of the EU’s €90 billion support package.

Beyond geopolitics, leaders are expected to discuss artificial intelligence , critical minerals , and global trade imbalances , with EU officials calling for a “reset” rather than confrontation in relations with China.

Leaders including Narendra Modi , Lula da Silva , William Ruto , Lee Jae-myung , and Ahmed al-Sharaa are attending as outreach guests, with a possible Modi-Trump bilateral meeting among the most closely watched sideline engagements.