Live updates: Trump touts Iran deal, as G7 leaders focus on Mideast, Ukraine wars

The G7 summit’s collision of Iran nuclear diplomacy and the flaring Israel-Lebanon conflict underscores how far the world has drifted from the multilateral consensus that once seemed possible. Trump’s insistence that a finalized Iran deal is imminent, paired with his call for Israeli restraint in Lebanon, signals a sharp pivot from the Obama-era approach that sought broad international buy-in. That deal, if secured, would mark a return to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action’s framework—one that Iran still insists on reviving, despite years of sanctions and regional escalation. The irony is palpable: the same administration that once derided the JCPOA as “the worst deal ever” is now touting a near-identical outcome, raising questions about whether the diplomatic pendulum has swung full circle or if the terms have been quietly renegotiated behind closed doors. This moment also reveals the diminishing influence of traditional Western-led forums like the G7. With global power concentrated in fewer hands, the summit’s ability to shape Middle East policy is now secondary to bilateral maneuvering—particularly between Washington, Tehran, and regional players like Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. The urgency around Iran’s nuclear program has been overshadowed by the immediate crisis in southern Lebanon, where cross-border exchanges threaten to spiral into a wider conflict. Trump’s dual messaging—pushing for de-escalation while positioning the U.S. as Iran’s primary interlocutor—suggests a calculated gamble: that Washington can thread the needle between deterring Iran’s proxies and avoiding a broader regional war. Looking ahead, the biggest unknown is whether Israel will heed the call for restraint or escalate under its own strategic imperatives. Meanwhile, Iran’s calculus remains opaque: does it see the deal as a pathway to sanctions relief or a temporary pause before resuming enrichment? The broader trend here is the erosion of the post-Cold War order, where multilateral solutions once dominated. Today, even the most consequential agreements are brokered in backchannels, not summit halls, leaving the public to parse the gaps between rhetoric and reality.