US President Donald Trump has said Russia should be reinstated in the club of economic powerhouses from which it was suspended in 2014.
“I’d love to have them back. I think it was a mistake to throw them out. Look, it’s not a question of liking Russia or not liking Russia. It was the G8,” Trump stated at the White House.
Read more: Israel could strike Iranian nuclear facilities in 2025 – media
Russia became a member of the group, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, US, and EU as a “non-enumerated member,” back in 1997. The country’s membership was suspended in 2014 in the wake of its reunification with Crimea. The region broke away from Ukraine and joined Russia via a referendum in the aftermath of the Western-backed Maidan coup in Kiev.
Trump has repeatedly criticized Russia’s exclusion from the group and floated the idea of reinstating it during his first term. At the time, the proposal was rejected by the other members of the club, while Moscow itself appeared to show no interest in returning.