That meant each leader was free to present their version of what had been agreed, without anything in black and white to contradict them. In fact, there were sometimes even more versions of the truth than leaders at the G7 — as some changed their stories as the day wore on.

The problem was immediately apparent on Sunday after the French government told reporters that the leaders — of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union — had agreed during dinner at a lighthouse on Saturday that it is far too soon for Russia to be invited to rejoin their exclusive club. According to the Elysée Palace, the leaders agreed that Russia has not taken sufficient steps to end its military meddling in eastern Ukraine.

Johnson, in particular, spoke out forcefully, reminding his colleagues of the attempted murder, in Salisbury, England, of the former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal — an attack using a chemical weapon that the West has blamed on the Kremlin. Asked about the leaders’ discussion, British officials confirmed the French view.

But Trump, when asked if he supported the stance of keeping Russia out, said no such decision had been taken. And as the host of next year’s G7 summit in the United States, it will be largely up to Trump to decide who is invited to attend (even if he cannot fully restore Russia’s membership rights).

«Clearly there was no consensus whatsoever, not even on the overall objective,» said an EU official briefed on the discussion. Trump reiterated his desire to bring the Russians back into the club. «There was very strong opposition to this idea from the Europeans, including President Tusk.»

Consensus conundrum

Such disagreements are all the more thorny in the G7 because there is no mechanism to force a decision. «The way the G7 functions is by unanimity,» the EU official said. «You don’t have votes in the G7. You need to have consensus.»

Asked if Putin would be a guest at next year’s summit, Trump played coy. «I don’t know. It’s certainly possible,» Trump teased, adding that he had heard from «a number of people who would like to see Russia» readmitted. But he declined to name specific leaders. «I don’t think it’s necessary,» Trump said.

Macron said the dinner conversation was exactly what he wanted — a forum where the decision-makers could freely and directly engage on substantive topics.  «We had a conversation that was very useful, in the spirit of what the G7 should be, an informal discussion, that is free and intense,» he told reporters.

But free and intense hardly assures that the decision-makers take decisions or make concrete progress.

On Iran, Trump similarly contradicted Macron’s own summary of what leaders had agreed. The French president said he was authorized by fellow leaders to issue a statement to Iran and to pursue discussions aimed at preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and at reducing the tensions that have flared since Trump unilaterally pulled out of the Iran nuclear agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“We’ll do our own outreach … but we can’t stop others from their outreach,” Trump said. “If they want to talk, they can talk.”

But the Trump administration also engaged in some overreaching of its own, with American officials in Biarritz claiming that the other leaders all agreed Trump’s policy of «maximum pressure» against Iran is working and that they support it.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The Europeans remain firmly committed to the Iran nuclear deal and have been scrambling for ways to save it.

Macron tried to walk a tightrope, saying Trump’s renewed sanctions had served a purpose, though the Europeans have always insisted U.S. withdrawal from the deal was a mistake. «Had the Europeans not been there to stay in the JCPOA, Iran would have left it so it was useful that some remain in it,» Macron told reporters. «Had there not been a sanctions policy and pressure, there might be less Iranian will to move on other issues.»

It’s still not clear that Tehran or Washington have any will to move on anything at this point.

That the G7 powers this year were acting more in their own individual interests than collectively was further illustrated on Sunday afternoon, as Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe upstaged the other participants by announcing a landmark trade deal; and France unexpectedly announced the arrival of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for a meeting with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian.

French officials said they had given the Americans a 24-hour heads-up, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters she left dinner Saturday with no idea Zarif had been invited to Biarritz.

French and Iranian officials quickly tamped down speculation that Zarif might meet with Trump — a potentially remarkable step given the deep enmity between Iran and the U.S.

But merely bringing the Iranian foreign minister to the same city as Trump and other leaders demonstrated how intensely Macron is hoping to foster dialogue that could bring Tehran back into compliance with the nuclear deal, and to ease fears of a potential war.