The G8 is an economic and political organization consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. They meet annually to discuss global issues, with the presidency rotating among members. The summit usually lasts three days and covers topics such as global warming and terrorism. The G8 was originally formed in response to the oil crisis of the mid-1970s and has since expanded to include Russia.
The Group of Eight (G8) is an economic and political organization designed to promote discussion and bring about change among the world’s most powerful nations. Includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United States and the United Kingdom. While the leaders of these countries still keep in touch at various levels, they meet as a G8 summit once a year to discuss the state of the world economy and politics.
The group has a nominal presidency, and the holder of that office is different each year, with the office rotating among members, so that a country’s leader is also G8 president for one year. The organization has no headquarters, budget or permanent staff. The country holding the presidency is the host country for that year’s summit and is responsible for paying for all costs associated with it. In recent years, security has commanded a high price.
The summit usually takes place in the middle of the calendar year and consists of three days of sometimes intense and very high-level talks between all eight leaders. Meetings between lower-level officials take place at various times leading up to the high-level summit. Topics for discussion at G8 summits have historically included controversial issues, such as global warming, Third World debt, Middle East peace, the political and economic conversation, and terrorism. Protests against the policies of one or more countries usually accompany the summits. Sometimes, these protests get more coverage than the summits themselves.
Economic policy and dialogue are the basis of the G8. The oil crisis of the mid-1970s shook the economies of the world’s largest countries and, at the urging of then French President Valery Giscard D’Estaing, the leaders of all current G8 members except Canada and Russia met to discuss how to respond to the oil crisis. It was 1975 and the original name of the group was Library Group. It was soon changed to G6.
Canada joined the group the following year, becoming the G7. Russia joined in 1991 after the fall of communism in that country. The fall of communism in Germany also meant that the official delegation from that country was all encompassing, not just representing West Germany, as had been the case when the Library Group first met.
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