US Officials Criticize Macron For Putting Pressure On Trump Ahead Of G7 Summit - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th August, 2019) US officials in private conversations criticized French President Emanuel Macron for an attempt to put pressure on US President Donald Trump before the G7 summit, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

According to the publication, a flurry of criticism hit Macron after he had invited Trump to an impromptu lunch, during which the parties discussed a number of issues, including Iran and Amazon wildfires. Such a one-on-one lunch was not planned in advance, the newspaper stressed.

Members of the US presidential administration accused the French president of focusing on such "niche" issues as climate change and the development of Africa, which meet his own political interests, the publication said.

According to a senior French official, the French president used lunch to explain his position on controversial issues, in particular, tensions in world trade.

The Group of Seven (G7) Summit officially opened in the city of Biarritz in southwestern France. More than 13,000 policemen and gendarmes arrived in the region to ensure security at the event.