Ukrainian diplomats are angry and frustrated because President Donald Trump departed the G7 conference in Canada early without first meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“There had been all sorts of promises for this summit — including new US arms deliveries being offered,” one diplomat complained to The Guardian.
The two were scheduled to meet on Tuesday at the G7, but Trump suddenly left the summit early and canceled his meeting with the Ukrainian leader, leaving the diplomats wondering whether it’s even worth it for Zelenskyy to show up at the NATO summit in The Hague next week.
“It is a permanent hazard that Ukraine is a victim of events and Trump’s short attention span,” the frustrated diplomat continued. “Vladimir Putin knows that, which may be why there was such a large attack in Ukraine last night.”
Over the weekend and on Monday, Russia unleashed “its deadliest attack on Ukraine’s capital in nearly a year,” according to the New York Times.
At least 28 people have been killed and 140 others injured after a mass Russian missile and drone attack on #Kyiv overnight on June 17 #UkraineRussianWar –#UkraineWar –#UkraineRussiaWar–#Russia #Ukraine #Russian #Putin #Ukrainian https://t.co/MwBvUOPDto pic.twitter.com/3WtsYWlDKD
— Shadi Alkasim (@Shadi_Alkasim) June 18, 2025
Trump reportedly left the G7 early to tend to the Israel-Iran conflict, leaving Zelenskyy to fend for himself.
The Ukrainian leader “instead sat down with the other members of the [G7] group at a special session dedicated to Ukraine,” according to The Guardian.
“[B]ut the central purpose of the session – to try to enlist Trump’s support to put pressure on Putin to agree a ceasefire – had been nullified by the US president’s abrupt departure,” the outlet notes.
In a further blow to Ukraine, the Trump administration vetoed a joint G7 statement about the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the grounds that the wording was too acerbic and could hurt peace talks.
Afterward, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s office issued a statement claiming that the Trump administration wanted to “water down” the joint statement. Carney’s office later released another statement backtracking on this claim.
The G7 summit in Kananaskis has cancelled plans to issue a joint statement on Moscow’s war on Ukraine because the United States wanted to water down the wording too much, a Canadian official told reporters.
— Steven Chase (@stevenchase) June 17, 2025
Zelenskyy was himself massively disappointed.
“Zelenskyy had billed the G7 summit as one of two golden chances to apply collective western pressure on Trump, and to discuss Ukraine’s plans to buy as much as $30bn to $50bn worth of air defense systems and weapons from the United States,” The Guardian notes.
“Zelenskyy had also been seeking US agreement to a cut in the oil cap from $60 a barrel to $45 in an effort to cut Russian oil revenues. The oil price cap requiring complex enforcement was introduced by G7 nations, and it would need at least tacit US support for it to be instituted effectively,” the outlet’s reporting continues.
The good news for Zelenskyy is that he did manage to squeeze concessions out of Carney:
Breaking: Canada will hand over more $ to Ukraine.
Mark Carney invited Zelenskyy G7 for a photo opp and to pick up a cheque.
4.3B in total funding. $2B in cash for drones and equipment, and another $2.3B loan for public infrastructure that Ukraine will never pay back. pic.twitter.com/l86Fxfvja3
— Kirk Lubimov (@KirkLubimov) June 17, 2025
All this comes as the European Union (EU) is working on imposing more sanctions on Russia.
“The EU is close to agreeing on an 18th package of sanctions that will include a ban on the importation of Russian oil refined by third-party countries and then exported to Europe,” according to The Guardian.
“The EU plan intends to designate oil as Russian and therefore banned unless the importer has clear documentation demonstrating it has originated elsewhere. Countries will also have to publish new ‘diversification plans,” showing how they will end reliance on both Russian oil and gas.
EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas stressed in a statement last week that more sanctions were needed.
“Russia remains unrelenting in its attacks, targeting civilians and prolonging its war. This is yet another sign: Russia is just not interested in peace, so we must keep up the pressure,” she said.
Writers and editors can be contacted at writers@bizpcreview.com with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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