G8 Summit
Leaders of the Group of Eight Major Industrialized Nations (G8) will meet in Scotland in July this year. Representatives from China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil have also been invited. Here’s what the G8 leaders want from the meeting.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair wants the G8 to cancel debt to the world’s poorest countries. He wants them to double aid to Africa to 50 billion pounds by 2010. He has also proposed reducing subsidies to Western farmers and removing restrictions on African exports. This has not got the approval of all members because it will hurt their agricultural interests~ On climate change, Blair wants concerted (共同的 ) action by reducing carbon emissions (排放).
US President George W. Bush agrees to give help to Africa. But he says he doesn’t like the idea of increasing aid to countries as it will increase corruption. Bush said he would not sign an agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions at the summit, according to media. The US is the only G8 member not to have signed the Kyoto Protocol (京都议定书). Although the US is the world’s biggest polluter, Bush so far refuses to believe there is sufficient scientific data to establish beyond a doubt that there is a problem.
French President Jacques Chirac supports Blair on Africa and climate change. He is determined to get the US to sign the climate change deal.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schrader remains doubtful of Blair’s Africa proposals. Schroder’s officials have dismissed the notion that money will solve Africa’s problems as "old thinking". Berlin says that African states should only receive extra money if they can prove they’ve solved the corruption problem.
Russian President Vladimir Put in was doubtful about the value of more aid to Africa. But he has seen a way to make this work to his advantage. Put in intends to use the aid to Africa as a springboard (跳板) next year to propose aid to the former Soviet republics of Georgia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Moldova.
Japanese Prime Minister Juicier Koizumi’s priorities are a seat on the UN Security Council, for which he will be lobbying (游说) at the summit. And he’s concerned about the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s nuclear weapons programmed.
G8 SummitThe G8 countries include China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil.