President Trump will depart early from the Group of 7 meeting in Canada on Monday night to deal with the rapidly escalating conflict between Iran and Israel.
Despite earlier resisting a push to sign onto a statement by allies at the summit that called for restraint, de-escalation and diplomacy, he eventually signed it.
The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, offered little explanation for Mr. Trump’s abrupt departure, writing on X that “because of what’s going on in the Middle East, President Trump will be leaving tonight after dinner with Heads of State.”
Earlier on Monday, Mr. Trump had hinted to reporters that he was feeling pressure to be more engaged in the Middle East crisis, saying: “As soon as I leave here, we’re going to be doing something. But I have to leave here.”
But what he intended to do remained unclear even as the president prepared to leave halfway through the two-day meeting. Mr. Trump had been scheduled to hold a session with allies about the conflict between Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday and to meet face-to-face with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine.
Asked on Monday morning what it would take for the United States to get involved militarily on behalf of Israel in its attacks on Iran, Mr. Trump told reporters, “I don’t want to talk about that.”
Ms. Leavitt, asked about the same possibility on Monday evening, said that “American forces are maintaining their defensive posture, and that has not changed.”
Israel has been encouraging Mr. Trump to join its military assault, which it maintains is aimed at preventing Iran from developing a nuclear bomb. But as of Monday night, Mr. Trump had announced no plans for U.S. military forces to join the fight, beyond helping Israel to defend itself.
Earlier in the day, a White House official said that Mr. Trump had decided not to sign onto a statement calling for de-escalation between Iran and Israel that was being prepared by the Group of 7 industrialized nations.
But later Monday evening, as Mr. Trump departed Canada to return to Washington, he signed onto an Iran statement after all.
“Iran is the principal source of regional instability and terror,” the statement, signed by the president and the other leaders, said. “We have been consistently clear that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza.”
An American official said that Mr. Trump changed his mind, in part after changes were made to the initial draft language of the statement.
“He appreciates the productive conversations and support he received from leaders at the G7, and returns to Washington focused on restoring peace in the Middle East,” said the official, who asked for anonymity to comment on private deliberations.
On Monday evening, Mr. Trump warned in a Truth Social post that the entire population of Tehran, the capital of Iran, should evacuate.
“What a shame, and waste of human life,” Mr. Trump wrote. “Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!”
It was not clear whether the warning was motivated by information that Mr. Trump had about a specific planned Israeli attack.
The statement that Mr. Trump signed expressed concern regarding the conflict, which began on Friday when Israel launched strikes across Iran, including on its nuclear research facilities. The Israeli strikes prompted waves of retaliatory ballistic missiles and drones from Iran, some of which struck targets across Israel. Iran has repeatedly said it does not intend to build a nuclear weapon but insists on being allowed to develop nuclear power for the country’s needs.
The statement, was signed by the leaders of the group’s member nations — besides the United States and Canada, they are France, Germany, Italy, Britain and Japan — along with the leaders of the European Union. It acknowledges the need to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and explicitly supports Israel’s right to defend itself.
But it also calls on both sides to de-escalate in order to resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear ambitions at the negotiating table, saying that diplomacy is the best way to resolve the dispute.
Speaking to reporters at the summit, in the mountain town of Kananakis in western Canada, Stefan Kornelius, a spokesman for the German government, said the purpose of a joint statement was to have “impact” on the situation in the Middle East.
Iran and the United States have been trying for weeks to reach an agreement in which Iran would voluntarily give up its nuclear research. Those talks were supposed to continue over the weekend but were canceled because of the strikes in both countries.
Earlier on Monday, Mr. Trump admonished Iran for not agreeing to a deal to limit its nuclear ambitions. He said he had given them 60 days to reach a deal that might have averted the Israeli attack.
“They’d like to talk,” Mr. Trump said of the leadership in Iran. “But they should have done that before. I had 60 days, and they had 60 days, and on the 61st day, I said, we don’t have a deal. They have to make a deal, and it’s painful for both parties, but I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late.”
Even as the G7 summit unfolded behind closed doors in Canada, the conflict in the Middle East continued unabated.
Israel widened its targets on Monday, striking and setting fire to the headquarters of state television while anchors were broadcasting live. Iran has been retaliating, sending missiles and drones headed toward Israel on Monday.
But Mr. Trump said that he believed the fighting would end soon.
“I think Iran basically is at the negotiating table,” he told reporters at the summit. “They want to make a deal.”
Michael D. Shear is a senior Times correspondent covering British politics and culture, and diplomacy around the world.
Matina Stevis-Gridneff is the Canada bureau chief for The Times, leading coverage of the country.
Zolan Kanno-Youngs is a White House correspondent for The Times, covering President Trump and his administration.
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