In the heart of the mountains of Haute-Savoie, a handful of leaders will try to provide answers to the crises that are shaking the world order. The spa town of Évian-les-Bains, in the heart of the Alps, welcomes from June 15 to 17 the Group of Seven (France, United States, Canada, Japan, United Kingdom, Italy and Germany). A high-risk summit, organized by Emmanuel Macron, in a particularly unstable international context. The security system is exceptional: nearly 16,000 police officers, gendarmes, soldiers, firefighters and border guards will be mobilized, supported by boats, drones and motorcycles. Objective also: to forget a memory still vivid in the Savoyard resort, that of the G8 of 2003, which saw tens of thousands of anti-globalization demonstrators surge.
This 2026 edition opens with the first transatlantic meeting since the outbreak of war between the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28. The conflict in the Middle East should therefore dominate discussions, while exchanges of fire between the United States and Iran resumed at the start of the week despite calls for a ceasefire. The Europeans, as well as Canada and Japan, do not support these clashes and are calling for a rapid reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the closure of which weighs on the world economy by causing fuel prices to soar. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar must also be associated with a summit session on Tuesday June 16. Emmanuel Macron considered it “very important” to find “ways and means of cooperation”, according to comments taken by Euronews.
Another major front: Ukraine. The Europeans hope to become central players again. Volodymyr Zelensky is expected in Évian on Tuesday, with the aim of obtaining increased support for his proposal for direct dialogue with Vladimir Putin, as well as the abandonment of any demand for Ukrainian withdrawal from Donbass.
L’imprévisible Trump
The discussions should also focus on the continuation of military aid and the conditions of a possible ceasefire, as the newspaper recalls. Les Echos. A session will also be devoted to “working for unity behind Ukraine” and the conditions for a dialogue with Russia, which invaded the country in February 2022. “It is very important for us because we must recreate convergence at the G7, in support of Ukraine on the different aspects of the war”, explained Emmanuel Macron during an exchange with civil society at the Élysée, evoking in particular the differences with Donald Trump on this issue.
The summit also comes in a climate of uncertainty around the American president. His behavior and his commercial positions worry the G7 partners, who hope that he will adopt provisions favorable to compromise. “It is not possible to “manage Trump” as during his first term,” observes researcher Liana Fix. the Tribune. All members of the G7 have already been subjected to its commercial and diplomatic pressures, and Europeans say they are ready to “hope for the best while preparing for the worst”. The French president would particularly like to convince his American counterpart to stay for a dinner in Versailles on Wednesday evening.
Macron wants to attack China
Furthermore, Emmanuel Macron wants to make the G7 a key moment in global trade upheavals, particularly linked to subsidized Chinese exports. But the chances of a common response seem low, due to differences between Europeans and Americans and Beijing’s reluctance, reports Politico. Before the summit, Emmanuel Macron has already brought together leaders around a meeting entitled “Global Convergence for Growth”, devoted to macroeconomic imbalances between the G7 and China. France, for its part, has long been pushing the European Union to toughen its response, in a context where the European trade deficit with Beijing continues to widen.
Finally, several leaders of emerging countries – Brazil, South Korea, India and Kenya – were invited to certain sessions, in order to avoid the summit being perceived as a closed club. Openings which will not be enough to make us forget a G7 regularly criticized for its inwardness.
