G7

Question 1

what is the Group of 7/8?

Answer 1

The G7 (8) = the group of seven (group of eight from 1998 to 2014)
is an informal forum consisting of representatives from seven developed economies
The G-7 is an informal block of industrialised democracies that meets annually to discuss issues such as global economic governance international security and energy policy
Includes the US Canada France Germany Italy Japan and the UK and the EU also attends meetings

Question 2

who does the G7 represent?

Answer 2

The organisation represents many of the worlds most advanced economies making it a very important group as G-7 countries represent nearly 50% of net global wealth

Question 3

main requirements to be a member of the G7

Answer 3

The main requirements to be a member of the G-7 - very high net national wealth and a very high human development index

Question 4

development of the G7

Answer 4

The G-7 started off as the group of six which was formed in 1975 as a form for discussion of the global economy in the way of the turbulence created by the oil crisis of 1973 and the end of fixed exchange rates
The initiative came from the French president, Valero Giscard d’Estaing, And a German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt
It’s original members of France Germany Italy Japan the UK and the
USA Canada joined shortly afterwards in 1976 making it the G-7
Russia joined in 1998 making it the G8 however the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014 led to Russia’s suspension and the group went back to being the G-7

Question 5

membership of the G7

Answer 5

The G-7 is not a permanent organisation and there are no formal criteria for membership
There are new rounds of meetings on the rotating presidency member states take it in turns to reside over and host each annual round of meetings and it is the responsibility of the presidency to set the agenda
The focus of G-7 meetings is primarily economic but since the 1980s it has expanded its remit to include foreign and security issues and energy policy

Question 6

strengths of the G7: PROVIDES A FORUM FOR DISCUSSION

Answer 6

Provides a forum where states can discuss common concerns openly and honestly in a way they could not do in other forums such as the UN
The group is small enough for intimate discussions between leaders and finance ministers which makes it easier to reach
agreement
The G-7 also represent states with similar political and economic systems liberal democratic capitalist economies which facilitates
consensus

Question 7

strengths of the G7: IMPORTANT
INTERVENTIONS

Answer 7

The G-7 has made a number of important interventions in global politics
In 1999 it cancelled $100 billion of bilateral and multilateral debt
it also went several steps further by doubling its aid to Africa and cancelling all debts of 19 countries owed to the IMF and World Bank in 2005 At the Gleneagles summit in Scotland
Into thousand and eight the G-7 met to coordinate their responses to the global financial crisis
Since 2014 the G-7 has placed pressure on Russia to withdraw from Crimea and stop supporting Russian separatist rebels in eastern
Ukraine

Question 8

weaknesses of the G7: LESS RELEVANT

Answer 8

The G-7 has become less relevant it started as a rich countries club to promote neoliberal economic policy, Arguably to the detriment of developing countries and economies, but has declined in relevance
It was formed in the 1970s by what were them the richest countries in the world but China and India have since broken into the top 10 of the most economically developed countries in the world but are not members of the G-7
At its peak in the late 1980s G7 members produce nearly 70% of the worlds GDP but this has since declined to under 50%
Countries like China and India are members of the G 20 arrival economic organisation that has become the key focus for dealing with the global financial crises and is moving to replace the G-7

Question 9

weaknesses of the G7: INEFFECTIVE IN
DEALING WITH POVERTY

Answer 9

Anti-globalisation protesters criticise the G-7 for its apparent inability or unwillingness to effectively deal with poverty inequality and climate change
It has cancelled much of the debt of developing countries but the gap continues to widen between them are developed countries
Despite sanctions and public condemnation is Russia continues to undermine the sovereignty of Ukraine and seems unconcerned about its exclusion from the G-7 probably because it continues to enjoy membership of the G 20 which is now generally thought to be a more important international forum

Question 10

strength

Answer 10

It is a forum where the leaders and finance ministers of seven of
the richest nations can discuss economic issues in an informal
setting and devise new policy initiatives
The G8 meeting at Gleneagles in 2005 saw a $50 billion aid boost and debt cancellation deal agreed for the poorest countries

Question 11

weakness

Answer 11

Membership of the G8 is historically rooted so it does not reflect the changing nature of power in the global economy there is no place at the table for China India Brazil so the G 20 has come to be seen as a more effective tool for coordinating global governance

Question 12

weakness

Answer 12

The group has been divided and unable to deal with emerging global issues such as climate change and growing inequality
the G8 has become the target for the anti-globalisation movement as seen in the protests in Genoa in 2001 which was marred by violence and led to the prosecution 15 officials for mistreating
protesters
The view that the G-7 reinforces a neocolonial division of the world and seeks to advance near liberalism even though this reinforces the global south peripheral status has led to many anti-globalisation and anti-G-7 protests
Including the huge clash between police and protesters in Genoa in
2008 around 50 protesters injured and one killed

Question 13

Why is the g seven so influentual

Answer 13

Together the G-7 represents 64% of the worlds GDP making it very powerful and influential

Question 14

When do the members of-the g seven meet

Answer 14

They meet for two days every year in a series of private meetings and public media briefings
G-7 leaders are not required to make concrete plans but they have agreed to extend sanctions against Russia phase-out fossil feels by the end of the century and end extreme poverty and terrorism

Question 15

A number of G-7 Summit have been responsible for important decisions

Answer 15

Gleneagles 2005
London 2013
Brussels 2014
Elmau 2015

Question 16

Gleneagles 2005

Answer 16

Under Tony Blair is chairmanship the G8 agreed to write off a $40
billion of debt and 18 developing countries and contribute 0.7% of
GDP to overseas development

Question 17

London 2013

Answer 17

At this meeting the worlds first global dementia conference was held in order to generate a more global response to the growing problem

Question 18

Brussels 2014

Answer 18

The G-7 committed themselves to sanctions on Russia for the violation of Ukrainian sovereignty

Question 19

Elmau 2015

Answer 19

The G-7 committed itself to decarbonisation as a preliminary statement of intent before the Paris conference
The leaders once again condemned Russia for the annexation of Crimea warning that we expect Russia to stop transborder support of separatist forces
Although Trump has recently said Russia should be reinstated lack of consensus among G-7 members

Question 20

criticisms of the G7:

Answer 20

The G-7 has been criticised because it statements have no binding power the G-7 leaders discuss a range of issues but the resulting communiqués or merely statements of intent and so have no real power for example the recent commitment to decarbonisation in 2015 has no authority and so critics have charged that the G-7 is little more than an expensive TalkShop
Most recently the G-7 has been criticised afterwards think ahead act again the 2015 summit it was criticised for ending the summit with mere commitment to progress rather than any tangible solutions

Question 21

criticisms of the G7:

Answer 21

G-7 has also been criticised for avoiding controversial issues for example in 2015 no specific policies were agreed on vital issues such as how to confront Isis or the Greek debt crisis
Obama simply called for members to show sufficient flexibility with greece and no specific policy was agreed on Isis

Question 22

criticisms of the G7:

Answer 22

Critics point out that the G-7 does not represent the reality of where global economic power lies today
Since the G-7 only represents the worlds most prosperous developed states it includes Japan but not China even though China is the second biggest economy in Japan is now third
G-7 could therefore be seen as a way in which the global north is attempting to retain its hegemonic Status by creating a barrier between it and the emerging nations thereby reinforcing the north south divide
Critics argue that the G 20 is much more representative of global economic and political influence today making the G-7 a historically
Outdated body and bringing its legitimacy into question

Question 23

Critisism of the G seven

Answer 23

Another major criticism is the G-7 is seeming reluctance to include other major countries and it talks particularly Russia and China
Causing many to question the overall effectiveness and relevance of the G-7 if it does not include two of the biggest global powers especially China which has the second largest economy and is predicted to overtake the US
Nations like India and Brazil have even surpassed some G7 members in GDP yet still have not been able to join
India’s GDP is over $1.8 trillion and Brazil GP is over $2.2 trillion get neither on the members Canada who is GDP is just $1.6 trillion is a member of the G7
Member countries only represent 10.5% of the worlds population feeling some to see the G-7 to my naughty governing an Under represented majority