G7 ministers converge in Quebec amid tariff disputes and fractured alliances

The rolling hills of Quebec's La Malbaie provided a serene setting for a deeply uneasy reunion this week, as G7 foreign ministers huddled to navigate a diplomatic minefield laid by their most powerful member: the United States.

Seven weeks into Donald Trump's return to the White House—a comeback marked by revived America First policies and brash diplomatic gambits—the summit has laid bare the fraying trust between Washington and its oldest allies.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived fresh from talks in Saudi Arabia, where Kyiv tentatively backed a 30-day ceasefire—a proposal met with skepticism by European ministers wary of ceding ground to Russia.

Meanwhile, Europe and Canada are scrambling to counter the United States' sudden tariffs on steel and aluminum, alongside its push for a rushed Ukraine peace deal seen as favoring Moscow.

But the real friction crackled closer to home: Canada's Melanie Joly vowed to rally EU counterparts against the tariffs, calling them economic bullying, while Rubio awkwardly insisted the summit wasn't about taking over Canada—a line that drew eye-rolls in Ottawa.

Even Japan, typically a quiet U.S. ally, found itself in Trump's crosshairs over trade. Diplomats grumbled about Washington's erratic demands, from softening language on Russia's sanctions-dodging oil fleet to resisting stronger warnings against China.

The elephant in the room? Trump's nostalgia for the G8—a group that included Russia before its 2014 expulsion. For now, it remains to be seen whether this fractured family of nations can stitch together a truce—or if the G7's next act will be a solo show.

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