Under pressure from the Group of Seven allies, US President Donald Trump backed a pledge to fight protectionism today, but refused to endorse a global climate change accord, saying he needed more time to decide.
The summit of G7 wealthy nations pitted Mr Trump against the leaders of Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada and Japan on several issues, with European diplomats frustrated at having to revisit questions they had hoped were long settled.
However, diplomats stressed there was broad agreement on an array of foreign policy problems, including the renewal of a threat to slap further economic sanctions on Russia if its interference in neighbouring Ukraine demanded it.
Although he tweeted that he would make a decision next week, his apparent reluctance to embrace the first-ever legally binding global climate deal that was signed by 195 countries clearly annoyed German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
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"The entire discussion about climate was very difficult, if not to say very dissatisfying," Ms Merkel told reporters. "There are no indications whether the United States will stay in the Paris Agreement or not."
Putting a positive spin on it, French President Emmanuel Macron said he was sure Mr Trump, who he praised as a "pragmatist", would back the deal having listened to his G7 counterparts.
"Only a few weeks ago, people thought that the United States would pull out and that no talks would be possible," said Mr Macron, who, like Mr Trump, was making his first G7 appearance.
Ms Merkel, by contrast, was attending her 12th such gathering, and clearly believed she had overcome climate change scepticism at a 2007 summit, when she convinced the then US President George W. Bush to pursue substantial cuts in greenhouse gases.
I will make my final decision on the Paris Accord next week!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2017
Disappointment over the Paris Agreement was countered by relief when Mr Trump agreed to language in the final G7 communique that pledged "to fight all forms of protectionism" and committed to a rules-based international trade system.
During his election campaign, Mr Trump threatened unilateral tariffs on Mexican and Chinese goods and said he would quit the North American Free Trade agreement unless it was renegotiated to his liking. Earlier this week he called Germany "very bad" on trade because of its US surplus.
In a tweet after his plane took off, Mr Trump said he had had "great meetings on everything, especially on trade", highlighting the part of the communique which called "for the removal of all trade-distorting practices".
He made no mention of protectionism.
Meeting in a luxury hotel overlooking the Mediterranean sea, hosts Italy had hoped that the summit would focus on Europe's migration crisis and the problems of Africa.
The internal G7 divisions and a suicide bombing in Britain on Monday, that killed 22, overshadowed the Italian agenda, but today five African leaders joined the world leaders to discuss their continent's potential.
Niger President Mahamadou Issoufou urged the G7 to take urgent measures to end the crisis in Libya - the point of departure for hundreds of thousands of migrants looking for a better life in Europe. He also criticised them for not honouring aid promises to fight poverty in West Africa's poorest regions.
"Be it Niger, a transit nation, or the countries of origin, it is only through development that we will prevent illegal migration," Mr Issoufou said.
The final communique was just six pages long, against 32 pages last year, with diplomats saying the leaders wanted a simpler document to help them reach a wider audience.
Security questions dominated discussions yesterday, with the leaders vowing to work harder to combat terrorism and calling on internet providers and social media firms to "substantially increase" efforts to rein in extremist content.
