G7 Closes Behind Trump's Iran Deal and a Tougher Russia Line

The G7 summit in Evian closed Wednesday with one story towering over the rest: Trump's agreement with Iran. The other six leaders lined up behind the deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and extend a fragile ceasefire, and in a rare move the US signed the summit's joint communiqué. Trump called it an extremely successful summit. Allies mostly agreed, with caveats.

This is the diplomatic bookend to a conflict that rattled markets all year. The US-Iran fight had put the Strait of Hormuz, the artery for a big share of the world's oil, at risk, and sent crude spiking before talks pulled it back. Evian turned that thaw into a group endorsement. For a G7 that has spent the year split over China, Ukraine, and Trump himself, agreeing on anything counts.

The deal, due to be signed Friday, calls for an immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts. Washington agrees to drop its embargo and work to lift sanctions, letting Iran resume oil sales. A 300 billion dollar private investment fund is built into the agreement, with more than half already committed from the US, Gulf states, Asia, and elsewhere. Trump said the Strait would open in full within two days. The communiqué also pledged tougher sanctions on Russia and renewed support for Ukraine, with Zelenskyy citing a deal to strengthen Kyiv's air defense.

Markets had already moved on the substance. Oil kept sliding, Brent near 79 dollars and at its lowest since March, as the return of Iranian barrels gets priced in. The broader tone was risk-on, with US indices near records heading into the Fed decision the same afternoon. The 300 billion dollar Iran fund is the part investors are still sizing up, since it routes serious capital into a market that was off-limits days ago. Sanctions relief tends to move slowly in practice.

The open questions are about durability and price. Critics argue the terms hand Iran a lot, sanctions gone, oil flowing, investment pouring in, and read it as a US concession rather than a clean win. Supporters point to a halted war and cheaper energy. Either way, the harder G7 fault lines did not close. China, NATO spending, and how far to back Ukraine are all still live, and the communiqué managed those more than it solved them. Unity on Iran, friction on the rest.

So Trump leaves Evian with the headline he wanted and a signature still to come on Friday. The G7 gave him the win on Iran and a tougher line on Russia in the same document. What it did not give was agreement on everything else, which is the part that shapes the rest of the year. One deal done. Plenty still open.