and to discourage further military action against Iran. Ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States gather with concerns strikingly similar to their March meeting. Russia's war against Ukraine, launched with the February 2022 full-scale invasion, grinds toward its fifth anniversary. Washington still hasn't ruled out new strikes on Iran even after President Trump's Republicans lost the midterms.

Attention centers on US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, attending both days this time, unlike March when he came for only one. The meeting, one of the last acts of France's G7 presidency, was long planned for Marseille but moved to Paris at the last minute, with only scheduling reasons cited. Rubio's trip is his first abroad since the midterms; Washington takes over the G7 presidency in 2027. The talks coincide with US-mediated negotiations with Moscow and Kyiv in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday and Wednesday aimed at ending the Ukraine war. Europe fears Kyiv could be forced into disadvantageous terms. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said France will be represented in Abu Dhabi. Trump has predicted a "very big" deal with Russia covering "all of Europe," while envoy Jared Kushner spoke of a "broader European security architecture"—a concept Europe has viewed skeptically. On Iran, Trump hasn't ruled out new strikes, including at suspected nuclear site Pickaxe Mountain, though Europeans want a resolution and normal shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said Friday the Iranians "want to make a deal very badly." A Monday donor conference seeks funds to repair the Chernobyl reactor dome damaged in a Russian strike; about €500 million is needed, with just over half raised. Marseille will still launch a network of 14 ports combating drug trafficking. Rubio declined to comment on the Republican midterm loss, saying power divisions are "not uncommon," and said he wasn't worried about protests in France. (Bssnews)