G7
- INTERNATIONAL
News:
G7 Summit: Bloc insists
support for Ukraine 'will never waver’
What's
in the news?
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At a G7 meeting in Japan, the bloc's
foreign ministers said they recognised that Russia is prepared for a long war.
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They reiterated that they would continue to support Kyiv economically and
militarily.
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The group of rich countries has been at
the forefront of sanctions on Moscow since last year's invasion.
G-7
- Backdrop:
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As of 2022, G7 countries make up 10% of the world’s population, 31% of
global GDP, and 21% of global carbon dioxide emissions, according to the Summit
website.
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The G7 countries are important players in
global trade. The US and Germany in particular are major export nations.
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The G-7 was known as the 'G-8' for several years after the
original seven were joined by Russia in 1997.
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The Group returned to being called G-7
after Russia was expelled as a member in 2014 following the latter's annexation
of the Crimea region of Ukraine.
Working:
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The G-7 does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters. The
decisions taken by leaders during annual summits are non-binding.
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The G-7 nations meet at annual summits that are presided over by leaders of member
countries on a rotational basis.
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The summit is an informal gathering that
lasts two days, in which leaders of
member countries discuss a wide range of global issues. The host country
typically gets to invite dignitaries from outside the G-7 to attend the Summit.
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The groundwork for the summit, including
matters to be discussed and follow up meetings, is done by the "sherpas", who are generally
personal representatives or members of diplomatic staff such as ambassadors.
Exclusion:
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China
and India, the two most populous countries with among the
largest GDP figures in the world, are not part of the grouping.
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There are no G7 members from Africa, Latin America or the southern hemisphere.
Challenges
of G-7:
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In
all G7 countries, annual public sector expenditure exceeded revenue in 2021.
Most G7 countries also had a high level of gross debt, especially Japan (263%
of GDP), Italy (151%) and the US (133%).
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The rise
of India, China, and Brazil over the past few decades has reduced the G-7's
relevance, whose share in global GDP has now fallen to around 40%.
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Internally the G7 has a number of disagreements, e.g. clash of the USA
with other members over taxes on imports and action on climate change.
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The organization has also been criticized
for not reflecting the current state of
global politics or economics.