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Europe ready to re-invite Russia to G8 when conflict in Ukraine is settled

Notably, earlier in the day Germany Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke against returning to cooperation with Russia in this format

LONDON, November 23. /TASS/. Europe has agreed to re-invite Russia to the Group of Eight after the conflict in Ukraine is settled, according to Europe’s counterproposal to the US peace plan for Ukraine.

"Russia to be progressively re-integrated into the global economy," Reuters cited the document drafted by the United Kingdom, Germany, and France. "Russia to be invited back into the G8."

Notably, earlier in the day Germany Chancellor Friedrich Merz spoke against returning to cooperation with Russia in this format. In his words, six of the seven members of this informal club of developed economies are not ready for such a scenario.

US President Donald Trump has recently called the collective West's rejection of the G8 format as a big mistake.

The G7 is a group of economically advanced nations comprising the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Canada, the United States, France, and Japan. It held its first summit in 1975 in France, with the original lineup including Great Britain, West Germany, Italy, the US, France, and Japan. The group operated as the G7 from 1976 until 1997, when Russia joined and it became the G8. However, in March 2014, following the events in Ukraine and a subsequent deterioration in relations between Russia and the West, the group reverted to the G7 format during Barack Obama’s presidency.

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