‘Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,’ say G7 leaders as Middle East tensions grow

The G7 economic bloc reaffirmed its commitment to preventing Iran from having a nuclear weapon amid the escalation of hostilities in the Middle East after Israeli strikes on Iran. 

At the Group of Seven (G7) summit held in the Canadian Rockies, world leaders, including the US President Donald Trump, issued a strong call for de-escalation in the Middle East amid escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.

In a joint statement, the G7 leaders emphasised the urgent need to ease hostilities across the region, stating, "We urge that the resolution of the Iranian crisis leads to a broader de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in Gaza," the statement read. 

The leaders also reaffirmed their collective stance that “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.”

China joined the chorus for restraint, urging both Israel and Iran to "immediately take measures to cool down the tensions" and prevent the region from plunging into further instability.

Meanwhile, Iran has hardened its position following Israel's intensified military campaign, which showed the indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear programme this week. 

However, those talks have stalled as Iranian officials said negotiations would not resume while the country is under attack.

"Absent a total cessation of military aggression against us, our responses will continue," said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday. 

He added that a diplomatic breakthrough could still be possible, stating on the social media platform X: "It takes one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu. That may pave the way for a return to diplomacy."

Benjamin Netanyahu is a wanted war criminal. He is also a con man who has duped successive U.S. Presidents into fighting his own wars for almost three decades.

By all indications, the purpose of Netanyahu's criminal attack on Iran—killing hundreds of innocent civilians,… pic.twitter.com/d1p6ZmSEEg

— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) June 16, 2025

In a startling development, a senior US official revealed to AFP that Donald Trump had personally intervened to stop Israel from carrying out a targeted assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, did not confirm or deny the allegation in an interview with ABC News. 

“It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he said, in a cryptic response that has raised further concerns about the trajectory of the crisis.