Although we’re now scattered across the globe, my sister and I grew up in Calgary. So recently, when we were both in town, on a cloudless blue-sky Alberta day, we drove the hour along Highway 22 (also known as the Cowboy Trail), past Bragg Creek and then along Highway 66 into the foothills of the Rockies. We halted at the Elbow Valley visitor’s center and bought an entry pass to access Kananaskis Country. 

Although we’ve known Kananaskis for years, the world may be hearing of it for the first time because the 51st G7 Summit will be held here June 15–17.

Group of Seven… or Eight

The G7 (or Group of Seven) was formed in the mid-70s in reaction to the oil crisis. It actually began as a meeting of finance ministers to discuss economic issues. It later evolved and increased in importance to include other global issues and become a meeting of the heads of state. In 1997, Russia was invited to join — but was expelled in 2014 when it annexed Crimea. So, it currently includes the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Japan — as well as the European Union. 

The presidency of the G7 rotates, and this year, it is Canada’s turn to host the summit. This month’s meeting will be chaired by recently elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. Although Carney is new to politics, he’s not new to economics and dealing with multinational scenarios, important people and conflicting priorities. He was previously head of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, as well as the UN Special Envoy on Climate Action & Finance. 

Aside from Carney, several of the other leaders are also coming to the G7 for the first time: the UK’s Keir Starmer, Japan’s Shigeru Ishiba, Germany’s Friedrich Merz and the European Council’s Antonio Costa. The fresh faces and perspectives bring hope for change and progress. But there are also experienced hands to steady the ship: France’s Emmanuel Macron, the European Commission’s Ursula von der Leyen and last year’s host, Italy’s Giorgia Meloni. 

US President Donald Trump will be attending, and indeed, his trade tariffs on much of the world will no doubt be the elephant in the room.

…and Guests

The G7 host is permitted to invite guests to the meeting, and it often does. The reasons for these external invitees can be varied, but include the following: to make the event more globally relevant; to show solidarity with the invited country; and to improve relationships with the invitee in terms of trade and security. In 2021, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson invited Australia, South Korea, India and South Africa. In 2023, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida invited eight guests: Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Vietnam, the Comoros (representing the African Union) and the Cook Islands (representing the Pacific Islands Forum). During Canada’s last G7 presidency, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invited 12 guest countries. 

This time, Carney has invited six countries: Australia, Mexico, South Africa, Ukraine, Brazil and India. Australia is Canada’s ally in the east: a co-member of the Commonwealth, a co-member of the Five Eyes intelligence network and a co-member of NATO. Mexico is a geographic neighbor as well as a partner in the North American Free Trade Agreement. South Africa has been on several G7 guest lists in an effort to show solidarity with a country that has gone through so much over the decades and continues to have a strong moral compass. Ukraine is included to show support for the country that has been fighting an invasion by Russia during the past three years. Brazil is a large and developing economy, a member of BRICS, and represents South America.

India has a lot of potential. It is a member of BRICS, and the fourth largest economy in the world — behind just US, China and Germany — and could be a major trading partner for the G7 countries. Furthermore, it is a democracy, located in Asia, and offers an excellent counterbalance to China. Many of the G7 nations realize this, and therefore, India has now been on the guest list seven years in a row. However, Canada’s relations with India have been fraught since the killing of Khalistani activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023 near Vancouver. Trudeau publicly accused India of orchestrating the crime before the Canadian Parliament. (In contrast, Trudeau did not find it necessary to scold the US or Israel for or even mention any of their assassinations in various countries around the world and continues to have close relationships with them. Moral outrage appears selective.)

Carney is facing some backlash in Canada for inviting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, Carney seems to know that India consists of more than just the Sikh community and one person’s freedom fighter is indeed another person’s terrorist. Furthermore, his stance is practical; when your big brother (huge brother) turns mercurial, threatens to eat you and plays fast and loose with the rule of law, it’s best to find new friends quickly, and lots of them. 

Boondoggle or beneficial?

Historically, G7 discussion topics have centered on international peace and security, climate change and the global economy. As the current president of the G7, Canada gets to set the agenda for this meeting. Carney’s primary objective is to build a stronger global economy. He lists three main missions: protecting nations; ensuring “energy security and accelerating the digital transition” and enabling “open dynamic markets”. 

Unlike other times, at the end of this summit, there will be no joint communique, perhaps because no agreement is expected. That and the number of ongoing global crises make one wonder if such meetings are futile. Russia continues to make war on Ukraine. Israel — under the protective umbrella of the US — has flattened Gaza and killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, and it is trying to starve the remaining. And just Thursday, Israel attacked Iran’s military and nuclear sites, as well as assassinated two senior army officials and two senior nuclear scientists. Sudan’s current civil war, which began in 2023 but has been largely ignored by the world, has already seen 150,000 deaths, some 11 million displaced and 26 million near starvation. The US proceeds enthusiastically and inexplicably to tariff friends and foes alike. Climate change has been put on the back burner. We rely on Carney’s lauded skills to make something constructive happen. The phrase ‘herding cats’ comes to mind. 

And yet these summits also present an excellent opportunity. It is an opportunity for Carney to showcase Canada — not only as a beautiful country — but as a stable, democratic, trustworthy ally that adheres to rule of law and upholds liberal human values, and as a responsible global leader. It is an opportunity for all the countries present to strengthen existing bonds, repair broken ones and ideally jointly address global concerns. 

A worthwhile summit

Unlike the world leaders, my sister and I did not helicopter into Kananaskis with an entourage and media coverage; we drove ourselves and entered the area discreetly through a side entrance. Our meeting room consisted of the length of the Fullerton loop, a hiking trail, with expansive views of the Elbow River valley and the snow-capped Rockies in the distance. We didn’t feast on haute cuisine, but we had a wonderful lunch on the outdoor patio of the Italian Farmhouse. We did not resolve any major issues, and yet we accomplished a lot. We spent quality time together, caught up on the various things in our lives, shared concerns and laughs, left some things unsaid but understood, and realized yet again how inextricably we are tied together. You can call us the G2. Our umpteenth summit. Outcome: successful. Communique: as read. And we will meet again next year.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.