U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to meet with leaders from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern countries on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France from June 15 to 17, a senior U.S. administration official said Saturday, as Washington pushes to finalize a deal aimed at ending the war with Iran.
The official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not expected to take part in Trump’s meetings with the Middle Eastern leaders. The meetings are expected to focus on efforts to wind down the war and on plans to demine the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil shipping routes, if the waterway reopens under the emerging agreement.
“We think we have an Iran deal. It’s a strong deal,” the senior U.S. administration official said.
“As the strait opens, we will be involved in demining, and G7 countries may participate,” the official added. Britain and France, both G7 members, have expressed interest in helping demine the strategic waterway once the conflict is paused.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and is a key route for global oil and natural gas shipments. The war has severely disrupted traffic through the strait, while the U.S. has also blockaded Iranian ports.
Trump is also expected to meet with the leaders of Egypt, France and India, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The official said Trump will have dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron at Versailles on Wednesday.
Netanyahu is the subject of an international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague over the war in Gaza. France is a party to the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the court, and is obligated to act on its warrants.
The past week has been especially tense between Trump and Netanyahu, as the U.S. president has pressed Israel to restrain its response to attacks and threats from Iran and the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.
Pakistan said Saturday that a deal aimed at ending the war was closer than “ever before” and expected to be finalized within 24 hours. Iran, however, sounded more cautious, saying that while a signing would not happen Sunday, the possibility that it could take place in the coming days could not be ruled out.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote Friday on X that an agreement “has never been closer.” Trump, who has repeatedly said in recent weeks that the sides were close to a deal, shared Araghchi’s post on social media.