President Trump is closing out the G-7 summit in France with a press conference alongside the country’s president, Emmanuel Macron, after days of seesawing statements and attempts at quelling fears of a potential economic downturn back home.
During the summit, Mr. Trump’s escalating trade war was on full display as he took the weekend to laud his Chinese counterparts, saying Beijing was actively reaching out to Washington to resume trade negotiations and “make a deal.”
At one point, he said he was having second thoughts about the hard line he was taking in the trade standoff with Beijing, but his senior aides later insisted the president was talking about whether he should have imposed even harsher tariffs. On Monday, he went back to his threats against the Chinese, saying if no deal is reached he would like U.S. businesses to leave China.
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The press conference between the two leaders comes after the president openly bashed Macron for trade policies while also saying they have a “very special relationship.”
Trump explains why he wants to host the next G7 at his own club
Mr. Trump, asked how he can reassure the American people he isn’t profiting off the presidency by wanting to host the next G7 at his club near Miami in Florida, claimed he is losing money off the presidency.
Mr. Trump says he thinks he’ll lose $3 billion to $5 billion by being president.
“I don’t want to make money. I don’t care about making money,” the real state mogul told reporters.
Mr. Trump went on to explain that his club in Florida has all the amenities world leaders could need, like the largest ballrooms and lots of parking.
“With Doral, we have a series of magnificent buildings — we call them Bungalows — we have incredible conference rooms,” Mr. Trump said, calling the place “natural.”
Trump claims Melania Trump has gotten to know Kim Jong Un very well
Mr. Trump went off on a tangent about his relationship with North Korea strongman Kim Jong Un, and claimed that First Lady Melania Trump also has gotten to know him well.
The first lady has not accompanied the president to his meetings with the North Korean leader, so it’s unclear what Mr. Trump meant by that.
Macron says he “informed” Trump of Iranian foreign minister’s visit
Macron, asked by CBS News White House correspondent Ben Tracy whether he asked Mr. Trump about inviting Iran’s foreign minister, said he “informed” Mr. Trump that Mohammad Javad Zarif was coming.
France, Macron said, is still part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which the U.S. withdrew from under Mr. Trump.
“We’re not looking for leadership change,” Trump says on Iran
Mr. Trump, asked about the U.S. relationship with Iran, said Iran isn’t the same country it was when he took office, even though the U.S. has increased pressure on Iran in an effort to make it forfeit nuclear capabilities.
But Mr. Trump said the U.S. isn’t looking for regime change.
“We’re not looking for leadership change,” Mr. Trump said.
Mr. Trump said Macron alerted him to the Iranian foreign minister’s presence at the G7 summit, even though the U.S. wasn’t informed of the visit in advance.
“President Macron told me exactly what was happening,” Mr. Trump said.
Trump says he thinks China is sincere in wanting a trade deal
Mr. Trump said he thinks China is sincere in wanting to make a deal, even though that hasn’t necessarily been indicated tangibly by the Chinese.
The president said he thinks that because he received a news alert of a Chinese official calling for calm.
But earlier Monday, Mr. Trump said he received two phone calls from China wanting to make a deal. It’s unclear which statement is accurate, or if they somehow both are.
“I believe they want to do a deal,” Mr. Trump said, claiming that the U.S. has collected more than $100 billion in tariffs from China.
Mr. Trump said he thinks Chinese President Xi Jinping is a great leader and a “brilliant” man.
Macron says “uncertainty” from China trade war is bad for markets
Macron, asked if the United States’ trade war with China could hurt the global economy, said of course trade came up during their meetings.
Macron said the trade war creates “uncertainty” with markets. Macron said Mr. Trump showed his willingness to come to an agreement over trade.
“Our deep wish is for an agreement to be found between the United States and China concerning trade,” Macron said in French through an interpreter.
“What’s bad for the economy is uncertainty,” Macron said.
Trump calls G7 “successful” and says there was “tremendous unity”
Mr. Trump claimed there was “tremendous unity” at the G7 summit, even though he skipped a meeting on climate change to, according to the White House, tend to other meetings.
Macron says he’s trying to arrange a meeting between Trump and Iranian leader
Macron, in his opening remarks, said he’s trying to arrange a meeting in the next few weeks between Mr. Trump and Iran’s Hassan Rouhani.
The Iranian foreign minister surprised the U.S. by showing up on the grounds of the G7 summit, although Mr. Trump claimed he wasn’t disrespected by that. The U.S. has taken an aggressive stance against Iran in recent months.
Macron also said the G7 communique will touch on Libya, Syria, Hong Kong and Iran.
Press conference begins
French President Emmanuel Macron started off the press conference shortly after 10:30 a.m., speaking in French through an interpreter.
Both world leaders are expected to take questions from French and American reporters.
Macron said he and Mr. Trump are holding the press conference together on Monday because the U.S. is hosting the summit next year.
