CANADA/FOREIGN POLICY/G7/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump arrived in Canada on Friday [6-8-18] with a defiant swagger for a day of meetings with America’s closest allies, vowing before he left the United States that he will not capitulate on tariffs and taunting his counterparts with a surprise call to reinstate Russia in their Group of 7 nations. The president made the suggestion about Russia to reporters at the White House before leaving for the annual G-7 gathering, which already promised to be crackling with tension over trade, Iran and Mr. Trump’s sharp-edged approach to foreign policy. In a series of tweets just before departing Washington, Mr. Trump railed against Canadian tariffs on American dairy products and promised to fight against ‘unfair Trade Deals’ with other nations. The tweets added to the confrontation between Mr. Trump and the leaders of those nations, who have accused the president of imposing illegal and insulting tariffs on their steel and aluminum industries. The Russia suggestion promised to heighten the animosities further, creating yet another schism between Mr. Trump and the six leaders he was meeting, largely in private, in a resort village several hours outside of Quebec City. The seemingly off-the-cuff suggestion also sharpened the sense of isolation for the American president at a summit meeting that some have branded the ‘G6+1.'”
– Michael D. Shear, “Trump Attends G-7 With Defiance, Proposing to Readmit Russia,” The New York Times online, June 8, 2018