Trump says in-person G-7 would ‘primarily’ take place at White House

President Trump on Thursday suggested he could hold a modified Group of Seven (G-7) summit at the White House amid the coronavirus pandemic, telling reporters he would likely have a final decision by next week.

Trump expressed confidence that the annual summit would go forward as planned after it was initially scrapped because of the pandemic.

“It looks like G-7 may be on because we’ve done well. We’re ahead of schedule in terms of our country, and some of the other countries are doing very well,” Trump told reporters as he departed the White House for a trip to Michigan.

“We’re going to have it probably at the White House, and maybe a little combination at Camp David,” he added. “But primarily at the White House.”

Trump signaled a day earlier that he was considering having the annual gathering of world leaders in-person again even as the world continues to grapple with the coronavirus outbreak.

Other G-7 leaders were largely noncommittal on whether they would attend the summit pending further details. The gathering was originally scheduled to take place June 10-12 at Camp David in Maryland.

French President Emmanuel Macron indicated he would be willing to travel to the U.S. if the pandemic situation allowed him to, while Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they would like to review the specifics of any plan.

Public health officials have warned that the coronavirus is unlikely to go away and large gatherings, like the G-7, may not be safe until a vaccine is widely available. The event typically attracts hundreds of international officials, staff and journalists from around the world.

Further complicating matters, the Trump administration has banned nonessential travel from Europe, China, Canada and Mexico, raising questions about whether it would be safe to convene leaders from those places in Washington, D.C.