Trump praises Iran, rebukes Israel at G7 summit

Donald Trump turned the G7 summit in Évian-les-Bains, France, into a public test of alliance management, praising Iranian leaders while rebuking Israel, the United States’ closest Middle East partner. The remarks landed as leaders were already trying to juggle Russia’s war in Ukraine, a tentative U.S.-Iran understanding, and the growing risk that the summit could expose fissures inside the Western bloc.

Trump said Israel’s military offensive in Lebanon had gone too far and told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be “more responsible” on Lebanon. That was an unusually blunt warning from a U.S. president at a moment when Israel, Iran, Lebanon and Hezbollah are all bound up in the same regional crisis, and it made clear that Trump was willing to pressure Jerusalem in public even while defending Washington’s broader security goals.

At the same time, Trump drew a hard line on Iran’s nuclear ambitions. He warned that Iran would “never have a nuclear weapon” and said the United States would not put money into Iran under the emerging agreement. The message was designed to reassure skeptics at home and abroad that any diplomatic opening with Tehran would not amount to a giveaway, even as it signaled a possible shift in the tone and mechanics of U.S. policy.

The deal itself remained a source of uncertainty throughout the summit. Reports said the U.S.-Iran framework was still unpublished and had not been fully disclosed to lawmakers. Multiple accounts said it could include sanctions waivers and a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategically sensitive waterways. The arrangement was also said to be headed toward a signing in Switzerland later in the week, underscoring how quickly the diplomacy is moving while key details remain out of public view.

The summit, held June 15-17, also became a venue for allies to push Ukraine back onto Trump’s agenda. G7 leaders spent significant time on Russia’s war in Ukraine, alongside broader discussions of international peace and security, economic stability, growth and emerging technologies. But Trump’s public split with Israel, paired with his praise for Iran, sent the clearest signal of the week: Washington is trying to negotiate in a region on edge, while simultaneously redrawing the limits of American support.