--- title: U.S. Allies to Turn Their Backs on Trump at the G-7 Summit description: On the same day Trump announced steel and aluminum tariffs against the EU, France’s Macron placed a call to Trump. It didn’t go well. canonical: https://time.com/5304194/us-allies-g7-summit/ author: Ian Bremmer article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-06-07T11:38:03.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T09:29:57.616Z article:section: Ideas og:title: U.S. Allies Are Ready to Turn Their Backs on Trump at the G-7 Summit og:description: Tariffs have soured relationships with U.S. allies og:url: https://time.com/5304194/us-allies-g7-summit/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d0e49e7c5675cae/69893272bc6cfccf103e6252/donald-trump-trade-g7-summit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2405 og:image:height: 1353 og:image:alt: Trump Trade G-7 Summit og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: U.S. Allies Are Ready to Turn Their Backs on Trump at the G-7 Summit twitter:description: Tariffs have soured relationships with U.S. allies twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2d0e49e7c5675cae/69893272bc6cfccf103e6252/donald-trump-trade-g7-summit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # U.S. Allies Are Ready to Turn Their Backs on Trump at the G-7 Summit > Sponsored content. 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A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=f117d24c-94b0-4d32-88de-45eb0a6f899e&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) ## Video: President Trump's Tariffs Draw Threats of Retaliation from EU, Mexico and Canada [Watch (HLS stream): President Trump's Tariffs Draw Threats of Retaliation from EU, Mexico and Canada](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/ZjJqDHK5.m3u8) (2:19)  _Published 2018-06-01. The Trump administration delivered a gut punch to America’s closest allies Thursday, imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum from Europe, Mexico and Canada in a move that drew immediate vows of retaliation_  by [Ian Bremmer](https://time.com/author/ian-bremmer/)  ## Ian Bremmer Jun 7, 2018 11:38 AM UTC The Trump administration delivered a gut punch to America’s closest allies Thursday, imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum from Europe, Mexico and Canada in a move that drew immediate vows of retaliation  by [Ian Bremmer](https://time.com/author/ian-bremmer/)  ## Ian Bremmer Jun 7, 2018 11:38 AM UTC On May 31, the same day the Trump Administration announced steel and aluminum tariffs against the European Union, French President Emmanuel Macron placed a call to President Trump. It didn’t go well. Hoping perhaps to draw on goodwill fostered by the congenial time they spent together in Washington in April–just before Trump disappointed Macron by withdrawing the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal–the French President decided to try some straight talk with Trump on trade. A source explained the outcome to CNN: “Macron thought he would be able to speak his mind, based on the relationship. But Trump can’t handle being criticized like that.” That’s why the gathering of leaders of the G-7 countries–the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada–in La Malbaie, Quebec, on June 8 and 9 is unusually interesting. The host nation’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, previewed the G-7 meeting as “extraordinarily valuable, because it’s an opportunity for like-minded nations to come together and talk about shared challenges.” Like-minded? Shared challenges? Not with a U.S. President who sees allies as constraints and prefers to get things done by twisting arms and making threats. Donald Trump made his mark in the cutthroat world of New York real estate the way a tough-minded poker player bullies those at the table with less money to spend. He played as if he had bottomless pockets. The guy who is not afraid to lose a few hands likes to push the stakes, to go all in and to dare those across the table to accept more risk by staying in the game. With that strategy, he won many hands without always holding the best cards or sitting on a fat wallet. As President, Trump brought this strategy to the table with South Korea and Brazil. When he made trade threats, the governments of those countries knew they could bring the U.S. before the World Trade Organization and (probably) win. But that would take years, and their economies would suffer much damage in the meantime. Instead, they cut deals. And so they figured: Give the bully some of what he wants and maybe he’ll turn his attention toward someone else. (The renegotiation of NAFTA may eventually end in the same fashion.) But there are limits to this strategy. What happens when someone calls Trump’s bluff? If Kim Jong Un steps into the white-hot spotlight that follows Trump and offers him something tomorrow but nothing today, what does Trump do about it? Launch a strike that risks a war? Call him names? Threaten tariffs on China so it puts more pressure on North Korea? Furthermore, what happens when Trump discovers he doesn’t have the big advantage he thinks he has? Trump believes (correctly) that if it comes to a trade war, the U.S. economy can withstand more pain than the Chinese economy. But Chinese President Xi Jinping believes (correctly) that Trump is politically much more vulnerable; Xi doesn’t need to win swing states to remain in charge. Sanctions targeted at Trump voters can do more damage more quickly than Trump might expect. Finally, when you discover you’ve picked a tougher fight than you expected, it’s best to have friends in the room. Like, say, the G-7 allies. But as those meeting with Trump in Quebec during this summit already know, Trump’s “America first” approach is backed by the threat of U.S. power, not the opportunities created by shared values and common interests. Because of this, it’s worth noting the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which will bring Russia, India, Iran and others to China on June 9 and 10\. The Europeans, Japanese and Canadians all know that trade with China will be a big part of their future. China may even soon overtake the U.S. as the E.U.’s largest trade partner. International relations are not a poker game. In a world of “every nation for itself”–a G-zero world–it’s harder than ever to accomplish anything ambitious without allies. Trump’s indiscriminate use of “I dare you to fight” tactics with friends and foes alike is eroding not only traditional alliances but also the institutions those alliances have sustained over many decades. Over the long term, that’s bad for the U.S. and bad for the world. ## Transcript It's very disappointing that the United States has chosen to apply steel and aluminium tariffs to countries across the European Union, allies of the United States, and all in the name of national security. And in the case of the United Kingdom, where we send steel to the United States that is vital for their businesses and the defense industry, It is patently absurd. Let me be clear, these tariffs are totally unacceptable. for a hundred and fifty years Canada has been the United States' most steadfast alley. In response to these measures Canada intends to impose tariffs against imports of steel, aluminum, and other products from the United States, representing the total value of 2017 Canadian exports affected by the US measures. That is 16. 6 Billion dollars. This is the strongest trade action Canada has taken in the post war era. It is not common for the US to use 2432 provision. And in a way to claim a national security action When you are affecting allies, traditional allies of the US, is not understandable. And so we announce today that we'll take action at the [ UNKNOWN ] an amount to compensate exactly the damage done to Mexican exports on steel and aluminum. This is very unfortunate. It is unfortunate because it will cause a lot of damage to our steel and aluminum industry. It's unfortunate because the motivation behind this, the section 232 that the Americans are using, internal security. Is not relevant. It is pure protectionism. Europeans feel an aluminum export to the United States cannot be seen as a threat to their internal security. Clearly, the European Union has to defend its interests. And this is why, as announced by the President yesterday, The European Union will today proceed with The WTO disparate settlements case and impose additional duties on a number of imports from The United States. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5304194/us-allies-g7-summit/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5304194/us-allies-g7-summit/"},"headline":"U.S. Allies Are Ready to Turn Their Backs on Trump at the G-7 Summit","datePublished":"2018-06-07T11:38:03.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T09:29:57.616Z","description":"On the same day Trump announced steel and aluminum tariffs against the EU, France’s Macron placed a call to Trump. 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