France will host leaders from India, South Korea, Brazil and Kenya at the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains from June 15-17 to build wider support for rebalancing the global economy. China will be absent; Paris plans to press Beijing to boost domestic demand and curb destabilising exports while urging the U.S. to rein in deficits and encouraging Europe to raise production and demand. The summit faces immediate pressure from an energy shock linked to the Iran conflict and uncertainty over President Trump’s attendance.
G7 to Host Leaders From India, South Korea, Brazil and Kenya in June — China Absent, Paris Seeks Economic Rebalance
French President Emmanuel Macron waits for the arrival of a guest at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, March 24, 2026. REUTERS/Abdul Saboor
By Michel Rose
France will welcome the leaders of India, South Korea, Brazil and Kenya to the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains from June 15-17, a move Paris says is designed to broaden support for correcting global economic imbalances.
At the center of France's initiative is a drive to head off what it calls the risk of a "massive financial crisis". Paris plans to press China — conspicuous by its absence — to lift domestic demand and rein in destabilising exports. France is also urging the United States to rein in its deficits and encouraging Europe to boost production and domestic demand.
Immediate Headwinds
Those longer-term goals could be overshadowed by immediate pressures. French officials say the summit comes amid an energy shock linked to the U.S. and Israeli conflict with Iran, and at a time when questions about the G7's global relevance are growing.
"We don't know where the Iran crisis will be by June," an adviser to President Emmanuel Macron said. "However it evolves, we will have to address its energy and economic consequences."
China will not attend the June summit and has continued to question the G7's legitimacy as a "club of rich countries," French officials said. Paris — which diplomatic sources say had sought to invite Beijing — plans to engage China through separate diplomatic channels and hopes to avoid direct confrontation.
An Elysee official warned that China risks losing access to global and European markets if tensions escalate. The official also stressed that the invited leaders are all democracies and market economies that adhere to international cooperation rules.
Political Uncertainty
Attendance by U.S. President Donald Trump remained uncertain. French officials noted that if Trump does not attend, it would reflect a shifting international reality that the summit and its participants must adapt to.
What To Watch: the summit's ability to translate broad aims on rebalancing the global economy into concrete commitments, how Paris engages China through separate channels, the impact of the Iran-related energy shock, and whether the U.S. president attends.
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