Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) began two days of talks in Paris on Monday, with allies seeking clarity on United States policy toward Ukraine and Iran after Republican losses in the US midterm elections.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is attending. The meeting is the second formal foreign ministers’ meeting under France’s 2026 G7 presidency, after the March session at Vaux-de-Cernay. France’s stated aim is to coordinate positions on major crises and assess progress since March.
It has invited Brazil, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine to take part in some sessions.
France has signaled that the meeting will not produce a joint communiqué. Ministers may still issue separate statements. No agreed G7 position on the conflicts has been announced.
The meeting comes immediately before planned talks in Abu Dhabi involving Ukraine, Russia and the United States. European officials are expected to be in the Emirati capital but not in the trilateral format.
Rubio told some progress had been made on the possible structure of postwar security guarantees for Ukraine, but that nothing had been finalized. He said more progress might be possible in Abu Dhabi.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has warned that Europe risks becoming irrelevant in efforts to end the war if European countries pursue separate approaches instead of a common strategy.
Russia has increasingly targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure, raising concern about winter power shortages. Shortages of Patriot interceptors and other air-defense systems remain a major vulnerability for Ukraine.
France said it would hold a donor conference in Paris on Nov 9 with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Ukrainian authorities to raise funds to restore the Chernobyl Containment Arch, which was severely damaged by a Russian strike in 2025.
Before leaving for France, Rubio said diplomacy with Iran had not produced significant progress and that the parties were not close to a breakthrough because Iran’s demands were unacceptable to Washington. He said President Donald Trump would prefer a diplomatic solution.
Some G7 allies are skeptical of the war and fear further US military action could worsen the crisis. Mediators, including Qatar, have proposed an interim diplomatic solution.
Instability in the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea shipping lanes has contributed to higher fuel prices. In a joint statement on Mar 27, G7 foreign ministers called for safe, toll-free freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. On Oct 2, G7 leaders agreed to coordinate refinery maintenance schedules and encourage higher refinery utilization to stabilize supplies.
Nepal imports all of its petroleum products, so international price changes can affect transport and import costs. The talks themselves do not set Nepal’s fuel prices.
France’s published agenda also covers Sudan, the Horn of Africa, Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, the Indo-Pacific, humanitarian supply chains, maritime security, counternarcotics and artificial intelligence. The first meeting of the G7+ Ports Network is being held in Marseille. World Food Programme Executive Director Luke J. Lindberg is taking part in the humanitarian discussions.
The meeting was moved from Marseille to Paris shortly before it began, amid security concerns after weeks of protests across France.
US politics
Democrats’ gains in the midterms cost the Republican Party control of Congress, US media projections show. G7 diplomats want to know whether the results will affect the administration’s approach to Ukraine, the Middle East and relations with allies. The president remains in office and retains broad authority over diplomacy.
What is next
Talks continue on Nov 10. France has not said how the meeting’s conclusions will be communicated in the absence of a joint communiqué. The Abu Dhabi talks are due to follow.
