Monday | June 16, 2025
While visiting Canada on Monday to attend the Group of Seven (G7) summit, President Donald Trump once again repeated a demonstrably false claim about Canada’s role in Russia’s removal from the international forum formerly known as the Group of Eight (G8). Speaking alongside world leaders, Trump incorrectly asserted that former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was instrumental in the decision to expel Russia from the G8 — a claim that contradicts historical fact.
Referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump stated, “He was thrown out – by Trudeau, who convinced one or two people, along with Obama. He was thrown out. And he’s not a happy person about it, I can tell you that.” However, this version of events is simply not accurate.
The G8 became the G7 in March 2014, when Russia was expelled following its annexation of Crimea, a Ukrainian territory. At the time of that decision, Canada’s prime minister was Stephen Harper, the leader of the Conservative Party, not Trudeau. Harper was, in fact, one of the most vocal critics of Russia’s actions and played a leading role in the coordinated response that saw Russia suspended from the forum. Justin Trudeau did not become prime minister until November 2015 — more than a year and a half after Russia’s ouster. At the time of the Crimea crisis, Trudeau’s Liberal Party was not even the Official Opposition in Canada’s Parliament.
Trump’s latest remarks came during a press event with current Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who succeeded Trudeau as leader of the Liberal Party. This was not the first time Trump had made this false assertion. During a press conference at the White House in May, he made a nearly identical claim, again wrongly stating that the effort to eject Russia from the G8 had been “headed by Trudeau” and then-President Barack Obama.
Beyond mischaracterizing the history of Russia’s expulsion from the G8, Trump made several other false or misleading claims during his Monday appearance at the G7.
Trade and Ukraine Aid Misstatements
While standing alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump claimed credit for a trade deal with the United Kingdom, referring to it as a “deal with the European Union.” This, too, is inaccurate. The UK formally left the EU in 2020 and is no longer a member of the European Union, rendering any such deal with the EU inapplicable to the UK.
Trump also repeated a long-debunked figure regarding U.S. aid to Ukraine, asserting that President Joe Biden had sent “$350 billion” to Ukraine. However, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy — a respected German research organization that has been meticulously tracking global aid to Ukraine — the actual U.S. commitment between late January 2022 and April 2025 totals approximately $138 billion. This figure includes military, financial, and humanitarian support, and the period covers over three months of Trump’s own presidency.
Even broader estimates used by U.S. government oversight bodies do not approach Trump’s claimed figure. According to the inspector general overseeing Ukraine-related U.S. aid, roughly $185 billion had been appropriated by March 2025, but only about $90 billion of that had actually been disbursed — and a portion of that funding never reached Ukraine, instead being allocated for domestic expenditures or regional assistance.
False Migrant Figures
Trump also repeated another common — and inaccurate — talking point regarding immigration, alleging that President Biden had allowed “21 million” undocumented migrants to enter the United States during his term. In reality, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded fewer than 11 million migrant “encounters” at the border between January 2021 and December 2024. This figure includes many repeat encounters and individuals who were quickly expelled or denied entry.
Even if one includes estimates of so-called “gotaways” — migrants believed to have entered the U.S. undetected — the number, based on figures cited by House Republicans, stands at around 2.2 million. Combining these figures still falls far short of the 21 million Trump claimed.
In sum, Trump’s remarks at the G7 summit were riddled with factual inaccuracies, many of which he has repeated on previous occasions. Despite public corrections and available records, the former president continues to assert false narratives regarding foreign policy, immigration, and international alliances — often reshaping historical events to suit his political messaging.