Trump reportedly 'furious' that Germany's Angela Merkel turned down his G7 Summit invitation over coronavirus concerns

salarshani@businessinsider.com (Sarah Al-Arshani)
·2 min read
merkel trump
The combo shows U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel posing for a photograph prior to a bilateral meeting on the eve of the G-20 summit in Hamburg, northern Germany, Thursday, July 6, 2017. The leaders of the group of 20 meet July 7 and 8.

AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, pool

  • German Chancellor Angela Merkel turned down US President Donald Trump's invitation to attend the G7 Summit in Washington next month, Politico reported.

  • While Trump pushes to reopen the US, Merkel has said it's too early to reopen and host large gatherings since the virus is still circulating.

  • Trump was reportedly "furious" at Merkel's refusal.

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel has turned down President Donald Trump's invitation to the G7 Summit next month, Politico reported.

"The federal chancellor thanks President Trump for his invitation to the G7 summit at the end of June in Washington. As of today, considering the overall pandemic situation, she cannot agree to her personal participation, to a journey to Washington," the report quoted German government spokesman Steffen Seibert as saying.

According to Reuters, the White House said that Trump believes there would be "no greater example of reopening" than holding a G7 summit in the US at the end of June.

Trump had initially canceled the meeting which would have been held on June 10 through June 12 back in March, as the coronavirus outbreak in the US grew.

Last week, he announced that he is considering hosting it again at Camp David, Business Insider previously reported.

In a tweet, he said: "I am considering rescheduling the G-7, on the same or similar date, in Washington, D.C., at the legendary Camp David. The other members are also beginning their COMEBACK. It would be a great sign to all – normalization!"

A senior US official, who declined to be named told Politico that Trump and Merkel had "heated disagreements on topics including NATO, the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany, and relations with China," during a phone call this week.

Merkel said she believes June is still too soon to reopen and hold large gatherings since the virus is still circulating, according to Politico.

Trump was reportedly "furious over Merkel's reluctance to attend the summit," Politico reported.

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