Donald Trump Still Wants Russia Back in G7

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would like to see Russia invited back to join The Group of 7 (G7) major economies.

The G7 countries are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S. These economies dominate global trade, and Russia was a member of the “G8” until 2014—but was expelled from the group in response to its annexation of Crimea, part of Ukraine.

“I’d love to have them back. I think it was a mistake to throw them out. Look, it’s not a question of liking Russia or not liking Russia. It was the G8,” Trump said at the White House when he announced new U.S. reciprocal tariffs.

In June 2020, Trump called it “common sense” to invite Russian President Vladimir Putin to rejoin the Group of Seven, arguing that addressing issues would be much easier with Moscow at the table.

Since then, Russia has launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths. As of 2025, Russian troops occupy approximately 20 percent of Ukraine, according to the Council on Foreign Relations’ Global Conflict Tracker.

This is a developing news story and will be updated as more information is available.