G-8 or G-7 = 1

The G-7 has been meeting since 1975 in an attempt to coordinate policies across the seven largest industrialized countries in the world. They have sometimes been successful in doing this; at other times, not so successful. But throughout its existence, the G-7 was always identifiable as a forum for the most powerful developed nations to discuss common policy issues. With the fall of communism and the transition of the Soviet Union to Russia and a variety of other countries, the G-7 has become something different.

A starting place for your understanding of this changing organization is at the From G7 to G8 link on the main page of this University of Toronto web-site: http://www.g7.utoronto.ca/ Next click on "Delegations & Documents" and start looking at the historical list of G-7/8 summits. Start with some of the earliest summits and identify the main issues that were discussed at those summits. Pick a few others along the way and then also look at the most recent ones.

1		What issues were discussed at the first summits?
2		What issues are being discussed now?
3		Have the issues changed since G-7 began attending the summits a few years ago?
4		If so, how have the issues changed?
5		Do you think that the addition of Russia has made the organization a weaker or stronger international organization? Or is it just different? Explain your thinking and support it with specific examples. Compare your answers with others in your class.