Strasbourg, 05/07/2001 (Agence Europe) - The European Commissioner for External Relations, Chris Patten, presented to European MEPs the ambitious agenda of the G8 Summit (the seven most industrialised countries on the planet, plus Russia) that will unfold in Genoa from 20 to 22 July.
Mr Patten indicated that the European Commission was in agreement on the priorities of the Summit, namely global development (and the fight against poverty), the environment and food safety, while insisting over certain issues: (1) fight against poverty and transmissible diseases: it will be necessary to bring political and financial support to the world health fund created by the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, and especially to have it coincide with the objectives of the Community action programme, said Mr Patten, for whom the G8, which still has a leading role to play in terms of debt reduction for third countries, must go further. In Genoa, Romano Prodi should recall in this context the actions undertaken at the EU level (see below), and the problem of access to markets will be broached in the angle of the Union's "Everything but arms" initiative. (2) Environment: the debates will concentrate on climatic change, and the G8 should adopt a declaration calling for the various parties to rapidly ratify the Kyoto Protocol (before the signatories meeting, at the end of July in Bonn). (3) Food safety: the Commission feels that a reference should be made to the respect for the precautionary principal linked to food risks and the changes brought by biotechnology.
A session of the G7 (minus Russia) is also foreseen and will be dedicated to: - the world economy: price of oil products, international financial architecture, economic reforms undertaken by the Japanese Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi (who will take part for the first time in the G8 Summit); - nuclear safety: Russian problem, disagreement over American anti-missile defence, financial aid to the Ukraine in relation to the closure of the Chernobyl power station.
During the debate, Giorgio Napolitano (ESP, Italian) questioned the "lack of representation" (for poor countries and even EU Member States) at the G8., which in part explains the lack of legitimacy experienced by these events. The Dutch Socialist Margrietus van den Berg would like for the "Everything but arms" proposal to go further, by reinforcing the fight against poverty. Marco Cappato (Lista Bonino, Italian) felt that the ending of customs barriers with the LDC should be pushed to the maximum and that the globalisation of trade should be accompanied by a "globalisation of rights" (abolition of the death penalty, ban on genital mutilations…). He also called for the G8 to have greater citizen participation, notably through on-line debates. In reply, Mr Patten called on the MEPs to avoid establishing a "moral equivalence" between the political demonstrators and the people who come to these meeting to demonstrate in violence.
On 20 July, Mr Verhofstadt and Mr Prodi will take part in summit opening
The Genoa summit will open on 20 July (and this is a first) will a meeting to which will participate the President of the European Council Guy Verhofstadt and the President of the European Commission Romano Prodi, the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, the Directors General of the FAO, WTO and WHO and the Presidents of several developing countries - South Africa, Nigeria, Mali, Algeria and Bangladesh (the latter represent the developing countries).
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Renato Ruggiero, wondered before the Chamber's foreign affairs commission if it would not be opportune in the future to organise a G20. Why not promote the meeting of the Heads of State and Government of 20 countries, whose finance Ministers meet periodically and are part of the International Monetary Fund mechanisms?, wondered Mr Ruggiero.