Kremlin on Tuesday expressed agreement with US President Donald Trump’s view that expelling Russia from the G8 in 2014 was a “mistake”. However, it added that the G8 format now held little practical value for Russia, and that the G7, in its current form, appeared “useless”, Reuters reported quoting Kremlin. Trump had criticized the administrations of Barack Obama and Justin Trudeau for removing Russia from the G8, which subsequently became the G7. He had labeled the decision a “serious mistake” and claimed that had he been president at the time, the Russia-Ukraine war would never have occurred. “The G7 used to be the G8. About nine years ago, Russia was excluded, something I believe was a serious mistake. Back then, leaders like Barack Obama and Justin Trudeau didn’t want Russia involved, but had Russia remained at the table, perhaps we wouldn’t be facing a war today. If I was the president 4 years ago, we would not have a war right now,” he had said on Monday attending the G7 summit.
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Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Saturday, during which they agreed that the growing tensions between Iran and Israel need to be resolved.
The conversation also briefly addressed Russia’s war in Ukraine and the status of ongoing prisoner swaps. Trump mentioned that, although Ukraine wasn’t the primary topic, they did talk about upcoming exchange efforts and Putin’s interest in restarting peace negotiations after June 22.