Trump’s message to G7 leaders this weekend: Be more like US

Source:Reuters Published: 2019/8/23 21:08:40

President Donald Trump will highlight US economic policies under his stewardship at meetings with other G7 leaders this weekend in France and encourage allies to follow the American model to stave off problems with the global economy, officials said.

Trump will attend the G7 summit in France from Saturday to Monday and plans to hold individual meetings with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Japan, India and Canada during his trip, senior administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters.

The president, who is irritated with the Federal Reserve for not reducing interest rates further, will tout the US economic model he has pushed forward through tax cuts and deregulation, one official said.

Trump will talk to his counterparts about how to open up European, Japanese and Canadian markets to ensure US businesses have avenues to sell goods and services.

Those talks could become complicated. Trump's trade policies have created tensions with many members of the G7.

Trump will raise his displeasure with French President Emmanuel Macron about France's digital services tax, which affects large US technology companies, the officials said. Trump has threatened to put tariffs on French wine in retaliation.

Trump will hold his first meeting with new British Prime Minister Boris Johnson since Johnson took on the role. The two men will discuss a US-UK trade pact.

In addition to trade tensions, the leaders are also likely to differ over Trump's desire to have Russia re-enter the grouping, making it the G8.

One official said there was unlikely to be a vote on the issue because the G7 leaders operated under consensus, but he said the topic was expected to come up.

Trump has voiced support for Russia to rejoin the group. 

The official noted that Russia had not formally requested to be re-admitted to the group.




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