WASHIGNTON, August 20. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump has said that it would be "more appropriate" to return to the G8 format and include Russia.

"I think it's much more appropriate to have Russia in. It should be the G8 because a lot of things we talk about have to do with Russia," Trump told reporters on Tuesday.

He also noted that his predecessor Barack Obama "had wanted Russia out of what used to be the G8."

The Group of Seven (G7) is an association of industrialized countries that brings together the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Canada, the United States, France and Japan. In 1997, it was renamed the Group of Eight (G8) after Russia joined the association. In 2014, Western countries decided to return to the G7 format after the developments in Ukraine and deterioration of relations with Russia.