FACTBOX: What happened at the last five G8 summits

Wed Jun 6, 2007 11:44am EDT
 
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(Reuters) - Leaders from the world's major industrialized nations meet in the Baltic resort of Heiligendamm on Wednesday for a Group of Eight (G8) summit likely to be dominated by U.S.-Russia tensions and wrangling over global warming.

Here are some details of the last five G8 summits.

CANADA - KANANASKIS - JUNE 2002:

-- Participants agreed a $20 billion deal to stop extremist groups from getting hold of nuclear weapons, notably from stockpiles held in the former Soviet Union.

-- In line with year-old promises, the leaders drew up a new development package for Africa, but the Africa Action Plan was criticized for offering a lot of advice and little cash.

FRANCE - EVIAN - JUNE 2003:

-- The G8 nations focused on the need to press ahead with structural reforms and greater flexibility in rich economies despite resistance, highlighted by public sector strikes, in host country France.

-- They sought to draw a line under bitter transatlantic differences over the Iraq conflict, which half the G8 opposed, saying all now agreed the time had come to reconstruct Iraq.

-- The summit was marred by violent demonstrations.

UNITED STATES - SEA ISLAND, GEORGIA - JUNE 2004:

-- The summit agreed to extend a debt relief program for poor countries, but fell short of demands for a total write-off of loans owed by African nations to multilateral lending agencies.

-- G8 leaders said they would extend the Highly Indebted Poor Countries initiative, under which poor states can write off some of their debt, for two years beyond its expiry in December 2004.

-- They also stressed the need to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict as part of an initiative for political and economic reform in the broader Middle East.

UNITED KINGDOM - GLENEAGLES - JULY 2005:

-- Leaders of the G8 say they would boost aid spending on Africa. But aid agencies argue there is little new money in the pledge from the summit in Scotland and accused the leaders of delaying the increases.

-- G8 leaders announced they would more than double aid to Africa by 2010, boosting spending by $25 billion a year from then.  Continued...

 

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