Genocide Watch: Letter to Canada on Trump and G7

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.”   Archbishop Desmond Tutu  

An open letter to the government of Canada  

We, the undersigned, are a coalition of international human rights organizations and activists, writing to express our opposition to U.S. President Donald Trump’s attendance at the upcoming 2025 G7 Leaders' Summit. The G7 Summit presents a unique opportunity for Canada to express its disapproval of Trump’s undermining of global stability and his disrespect for human rights.  

From June 15 to 17, 2025, Canada will host the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta. This meeting is a critical opportunity for Canada to take a stand against Trump’s disrespect for Canadian sovereignty, his undermining of NATO and the United Nations, his cutting of U.S. foreign aid, his imposition of trade-disruptive tariffs, and his appalling disregard for international human rights.  

We urge the Canadian government to disinvite President Trump from the G7 Summit.  

The Trump administration represents the antithesis of G7 values of global cooperation. Trump’s dismantling of USAID programs has destroyed hundreds of aid programs for health, food, and democracy. The cuts have left at least 36 million refugees without critical humanitarian support.  

Trump’s funding cuts have already cost thousands of human lives. Seven out of twenty-seven health clinics in South Sudan were forced to close after Trump cancelled $13 million in funding to Save the Children. 48,000 adults and 5,400 children have already died as a result of Trump’s suspension of funding to PEPFAR, the global program for HIV treatment and prevention. Trump’s termination of funding to emergency programs run by the World Food Program jeopardizes millions of lives in Afghanistan, Syria, and Yemen. At least 8,000 women have already died from childbirth complications due to shutdowns of USAID support for maternity centers.  

Around 6,000 people are dying daily due to cuts in U.S. foreign aid. During his first 100 days in office, Trump’s regime has thus far caused over 600,000 deaths.  

Trump’s suspension of military intelligence assistance and shipments of U.S. ammunition to Ukraine immediately caused the deaths of hundreds of Ukrainian civilians killed by Russian missiles. Trump’s tilt toward Moscow threatens the lives of Ukrainian soldiers who are fighting for Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity.  

Allowing Trump to attend the G7 Summit would betray Ukrainian Canadians, one of Canada’s largest national diaspora communities. Alberta is home to tens of thousands of  Ukrainian Canadians. Trump’s support for Russia – praising Putin, blaming Ukraine for Russian aggression,  siding with Russia in the UN General Assembly, and calling Ukrainian President Zelensky a “dictator” – betrays both Ukrainians and Ukrainian Canadians in Alberta, where the G7 Summit will be held. Trump’s attendance at the G7 summit would signal Canada’s acquiescence in Trump’s approval of Russian aggression against Ukraine. 

In March 2025, Trump suspended funding to a Yale University project dedicated to locating Ukrainian children abducted by Russia. Russia’s kidnapping of Ukrainian children is an act of genocide. Many of these stolen children have been subjected to abuse and forced assimilation in Russia.  

The International Criminal Court has charged Vladimir Putin with transferring Ukrainian children to Russia, an act of genocide under Article 2(e) of the Genocide Convention. Ukraine has charged Russia with violation of the Genocide Convention in the International Court of Justice. 

Canada must use the G7 Summit to take a firm stand against these Russian crimes against humanity and acts of genocide. Canada must use the G7 summit to demand accountability from Russia and the immediate return of Ukraine’s children. 

The G7 Summit will take place at Kananaskis, in the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy, Stoney Nakoda, and Tsuut’ina Nations. Canada has a responsibility to ensure that the G7 Summit addresses Indigenous peoples’ rights. Trump opposes environmental protection for Indigenous people in the USA. He has decimated the staffing of the Environmental Protection Agency and has withdrawn from the Paris Climate Accord.   

Russia and China claim that reconquest of former imperial territories legitimates national expansion. Trump’s expressed intent to annex Canada as the 51st state is a return to the age of U.S. President McKinley and U.S. colonialism. It is a direct threat to the Indigenous peoples of Canada. Trump has consistently ignored the rights of Indigenous peoples, both in the U.S. and abroad.  

Trump has expressed approval of Putin’s invasion and occupation of Crimea, which has led to persecution of Crimean Tatars by Russia. Trump’s defence of Russia’s aggression is only paralleled by Chamberlain’s appeasement of Hitler at Munich. 

This is not business as usual. The world is witnessing the U.S. descent into authoritarianism under Trump’s leadership. Trump’s regime is marked by contempt for human rights, the rule of law, and global stability. 

Trump’s actions include detaining and deporting immigrants without due process, in contempt of U.S. District Court and Supreme Court orders. His mass deportations violate international Refugee Conventions and the US Refugee Act of 1980. They constitute forced deportation, a crime against humanity in violation of Article 7(1)(d) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. 

Trump has targeted minorities and has ordered the end of U.S. diversity and equity programs. He has eliminated protections for members of the LGBTQIA+ community. He has systematically dismantled entire federal agencies and jeopardized funding for the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and National Endowment for the Arts. He has declared his intent to dissolve the U.S. African Development Foundation, the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Inter-American Foundation, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation.  

Canada should not allow someone who flouts international law and human rights to participate in a forum designed to foster global cooperation. The U.S. cannot openly threaten its allies while expecting a seat with them at a G7 summit they have convened.  

As a country that prides itself on its commitment to democracy and human rights, Canada must refuse to allow Donald Trump to influence the G7 Summit. Trump’s policies are rooted in racism, hatred, authoritarianism, and injustice. They have no place in global leadership. 

Canada must not allow U.S. President Donald Trump to attend the G7 Summit.  

We, the undersigned, call upon Canada to take a firm stand for justice, democracy, and the rule of law. We urge Canada to send a clear message to Trump and his government that there is no place at the G7 Summit for leaders who promote racism, hate, authoritarianism, and attacks on human dignity. 

By signing this letter, we stand in solidarity with all who have suffered from Trump’s authoritarian takeover of the U.S. government. We urge the Canadian government to use its leadership of the G7 Summit to affirm the G7’s commitment to justice and human rights around the world. 

Let Canada be the country that draws the line, a line that bars U.S. President Donald Trump from the G7 Summit.