Leaders of G7 countries discussed possible return to the G8 format with the participation of Russia on the first day of a summit in the French city of Biarritz, the Kyodo agency reported on Sunday, citing sources in the Japanese government.
The exact content of the conversation is undisclosed, the agency’s sources said.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump agreed to French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to invite Russia to the 2020 G7 summit in the United States. Trump also said that Russia should return to what used to be G8. While some countries, like Japan, are open to the idea, others, like Canada, remain stridently opposed to it. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week that his country saw any form of dialogue with G7 nations as useful.