Group of Eight

Introduction to Group of Eight

Group of Eight, economic and political forum for eight of the world’s most industrialized nations: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States. The group arose informally during the 1970s from the meetings of finance ministers arranged by President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing of France and Chancellor Helmut Schmidt of West Germany (now a part of the unified Federal Republic of Germany). The two men invited other heads of government to join them in these meetings. The Group of Eight, known as the G-8, now meets once a year to exchange information and ideas-particularly in economics-and to discuss matters of international concern. Russia was first invited to the summit as a guest in 1991. In 1997 Russia for the first time was invited to participate in almost all of the deliberations, was officially recognized as a member in 1998. Before Russia became a member, the forum was known as the Group of Seven or G-7. The G-8 has no headquarters or formal structure.” (1)

Resources

Notes and References

• Information about Group of Eight in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia

Guide to Group of Eight