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2008
Thursday 10 July 2008 RUSUTSU; G8 MEETING ENDS IN ENVIRONMENTAL DISCORD
The G8 summit in Japan has ended with a rift between its hosts and guests. Canada and the other G8 countries invited representatives of China, India, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa and three other developing nations. On Tuesday, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the other G8 leaders endorsed a target of a one-half reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Mr. Harper said that it's inevitable that developing nations will have to do their share because by 2050 the developed world won't be responsible for more than 20 per of emissions, and that it's mathematically impossible to "get a 50-per cent cut from 20 per cent of emissions." But the five above-mentioned developing states issued a joint statement rejecting that position, instead urging the G8 states to do more to cut emissions.
RUSUTSU: PM MEETS CHINESE LEADER
Mr. Harper has taken advantage of the G8 meeting to have a separate encounter on the sidelines with Chinese President Hu Jintao. The two leaders discussed climate change and bilateral commercial relations. Mr. Harper raised the case of Hussein Celil, a Canadian and ethnic Chinese Uighur, who is serving a lifetime prison term in China after being convicted for alleged terrorism. The prime minister expressed the hope that the renewed negotiations between Taiwan and China as well as between Beijing and representatives of the Dalai Lama will improve political stability in that part of the world.
NETHERLANDS
The UN's top climate official says the G8 leader meeting in Japan this week had failed to set a clear goal to reduce the carbon emissions that cause global warming. Yvo de Boer says the stated goal of reducing emissions by 50 per cent by 2050 doesn't come with a baseline year to provide a reference and is also open to many different interpretations. The UN official also blamed the leaders for not making their target legally binding. Mr. de Boer says it would also have been wise to set targets for 2020 to provide businesses with better investment guidance and to encourage developing countries to join efforts to curb greenhouse gases. The official leads the UN negotiations to draw up a new environmental treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change. The negotiations are supposed to culminate in a new treaty at Copenhagen in December 2009.
ZIMBABWE
The government has criticized the stand taken by the G8 in support of UN sanctions against Zimbabwe because of the dubious presidential runoff election on June 27. Zimbabwe's information minister, Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, calls the draft sanctions a "colonial and racist campaign" led by the U.S. and Britain. The sanctions would include an arms embargo and travel restrictions on 14 officials. British Prime Minister Gordon says there should be "no hiding place for the criminal cabal" that controls Zimbabwe. President Robert Mugabe won the June 27 vote after his adversary Morgan Tsvangirei withdrew because of electoral violence against his supporters by Mr. Mugabe's.
Thursday Jul 10, 2008 Developing countries balk at emissions targets
The Group of Eight summit wrapped up yesterday with developed and emerging economies unable to agree...
Wednesday 09 July 2008 RUSUTSU: G8 WON'T RECOGNIZE ZIMBABWE GOVT.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the other leaders of the G8 grouping of countries have issued a joint statement in which they refuse to recognize the government of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Mr. Mugabe won an easy victory in last month's presidential election. His adversary, Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirei, withdrew from the election because of widespread violence and intimidation against its supporters. The G8 statement condemns the attacks and threatens "financial and other measures" against those responsible for them. Canada had already pledged to impose restrictions on travel, work and study on senior Zimbabwean government, military and police officials. Aircraft registered in Zimbabwe won't be permitted to land in Canada or to fly through Canadian airspace
Wednesday 09 July 2008 BRAZIL
Economy minister Guido Mantega has criticized opposition within the G8 grouping to allowing economically dynamic nations like his from joining it. Mr. Mantega calls the situation "an inconsistency, an incoherence" on the part of countries which recognize Brazil's importance yet refuse to accept its entry into the G8. According to the state news agency the minister was alluding to the U.S. and Italy. Canada and the other G8 members concluded a two-day summit in Japan on Tuesday. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has suggested the grouping be widened to include Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa.
Wednesday Jul 9, 2008 G8 ready to push China on climate change
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his allies undertake the difficult task today of selling China and...
Zimbabwe 'grave concern,' nations say, vowing to punish Mugabe
The G8 nations expressed "grave concern" about Zimbabwe yesterday, vowing to impose financial restrictions...
Tuesday 08 July 2008 RUSUTSU: G8 WON'T MAKE EMISSIONS TARGET COMMITMENT
The Canadian Press reports that Canada and the other G8 nations won't make a firm commitment on targets for reduction of toxic industrial emissions. CP's reporter covering the G8 summit in Japan bases his report on a draft text dated June 23 which is expected to form the basis of a joint statement to be released later in the week. The draft seems to defer any decisions on emissions targets to the United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, next year. The event is aimed at the negotiation of a successor accord to the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change, which expires in 2012. The draft makes no mention of the G8's grouping's agreement last year to "consider seriously" reducing global emissions by one-half by 2050
Seven African leaders joined Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the other G8 leaders at their summit in the northern resort of Toyako. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after the opening session of the 15 leaders that the Africans had demanded action as the global food and fuel crisis worsens. She says they expressed worry that the Millennium Development Goals will be harder to meet if commodity prices keep rising. The UN launched its Millennium Development Goals in 2000 and revolve around an eight-point plan to reduce poverty and improve health care and education in Africa by 2015. The G8 nations have been falling behind in reaching the targets. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon called on Canada and the other G8 nations to live up to their promises to double aid for Africa by 2010.
Tuesday Jul 8, 2008 G8 leaders can't solve all the world's problems
When the leaders of the G8 countries leave Hokkaido, Japan, tomorrow, after their three-day meeting, the world will not be a dramatically better place because they met. Protesters, commentators, opposition politicians and issue activists will quickly denounce the leaders for not solving the world's myriad problems.
Tuesday Jul 8, 2008 Climate issue will be hot topic
Facing questions about whether their rich-nation club can solve the world's problems, Prime Minister...
Tuesday Jul 8, 2008 Activists criticize Canada
Canada came under fire on the first day of the Group of Eight summit for lagging behind other G8 nations...
The G8 is showing its age
Clubs are all too often full of people prattling on about things they no longer know about. Yesterday, the leaders of the group that allegedly runs the world - the G7 democracies plus Russia - gathered in Japan to review the world economy.
Get rid of Mugabe - G8 chiefs
G8 leaders sent a strong message to African leaders yesterday that the Zimbabwean regime of Robert Mugabe...
Tuesday Jul 8, 2008 Greenhouse gases to be cut in half: G8
Leaders to work toward reducing emissions in half by 2050, but give no numerical targets
Monday 07 July 2008 OTTAWA: PRIME MINISTER LEAVES FOR G8 SUMMIT
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his environment minister, John Baird, were scheduled to leave on Saturday for a meeting of the Group of Eight nations that begins on Monday in Japan. The summit is expected to focus on environmental issues and on ways to stimulate the world economy. Mr. Harper is expected to argue that a global agreement on climate change is worthless without including the world's biggest polluters, the United States, China and India.
Thousands of farmers and activists demonstrated on Saturday in the northern Japanese city of Sapporo ahead of the Group of Eight summit that begins on Monday. Police who responded in large numbers arrested four protesters. Demonstrators demanded the G8 leaders take urgent measures to stop global warming and combat world poverty. The Summit site has been sealed off by police.
Monday 07 July 2008 Bush and G-8 Leaders Push Hard Line on Zimbabwe
African leaders at the Group of Eight meeting resisted pressure to adopt a tougher stance against Robert Mugabe.
TOYAKO, Japan — As world leaders convened in this resort town in northern Japan on Monday for three days of talks on issues including climate change and rising food and energy prices, the agenda quickly shifted to the political crisis in Zimbabwe, exposing a split between Western and African leaders.
Monday 07 July 2008 RUSUTSU: ENVIRONMENT MINISTER DOUBTS G8 BREAKTHROUGH
Canada's environment minister expressed doubt on Sunday that the G8 summit will lead to a breakthrough in efforts to combat climate change. John Baird is accompanying Prime Minister Stephen Harper at the summit. Speaking on his way to Japan, Mr. Baird doubted that the G8 leaders will leave with firm goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He said that a more likely meeting for setting reduction targets would come next year at the United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. But the environmental group, Greenpeace Canada, says that Canada is encouraging a dangerous international situation by suggesting that the summit can do nothing about climate change. On the eve of the summit, U.S. President George W. Bush said that any climate change plan would have to involve major polluting countries like China and India. But the United States also stands accused of doing too little to change its status as the world's biggest polluter.
Monday 07 July 2008 Rising costs dominate G8 summit
World leaders are starting a key summit in Japan that is expected to focus on soaring global food and fuel prices.
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