Canadian PM hails US–Iran memorandum as potential “game changer”

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney said a US-Iran deal to end the Middle East war could be a "game changer" in the region and beyond.

Carney said there is “a likelihood that this memorandum of understanding agreement could be a game changer,” speaking to reporters on the third day of a G7 leaders’ meeting in the French town of Evian. He highlighted what he described as encouraging discussions involving US President Donald Trump on Ukraine and Lebanon during the summit, France24 reports.

Carney noted what he called a shift in Washington’s approach to the war in Ukraine.

The Canadian prime minister said he observed a US “change in tone with respect to Ukraine” as Kyiv seeks to end more than four years of conflict following Russia’s invasion.

This included “a more realistic -- in our view -- expectation of where this war was going to go, and the position against Russia, the tightening of sanctions against Russia, the ability to provide additional defensive support for Ukraine.”

Leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, and the United States also held a “very detailed discussion about Lebanon,” he added.

According to Carney, talks on a final US–Iran settlement aimed at ending the conflict — triggered by the February 28 US-Israeli strikes on Tehran — are expected to begin on June 19 immediately after the signing of the accord in Switzerland, continuing over a 60-day period to finalize its details.

However, renewed Israeli strikes on alleged Iran-backed Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon have dampened optimism surrounding the agreement.

“Yes, there are risks. Yes, the accord has to be put into place,” Carney said.

“But the very fact of it -- and the fact that so many countries were involved in its development and are vested in its development -- does create knock-on effects, positive knock-on effects,” he added.

In a joint statement the G7 welcomed “the breakthrough and the opportunity that currently exist in the Middle East.”

The statement said the memorandum of understanding “provides an historic opportunity to prevent Iran from acquiring any nuclear weapon and tackling the threats related to its regional and ballistic activities.”

By Vafa Guliyeva