U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would invite Russian President Vladimir Putin to the summit of the Group of Seven in 2020.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on July 18, 2019. (Photo: Xinhua)
"I would certainly invite him," Trump told the closing press conference of the G7 summit at the French seaside resort Biarritz.
He added he is not sure whether Putin, "a proud man" in his term, would accept the invitation.
Trump demands that Russia be readmitted to the group despite disagreement of other leaders. The G8 format (the U.S., Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Germany, Japan and Russia) had been in place from 1998-2014. It was then reduced to G7 due to disagreements with Russia regarding the events in Crimea and Ukraine.
The U.S. takes over the rotating presidency of G7 in 2020. Trump said the next summit might be in Miami, Florida.
