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The G7 or Group of Seven is an organisation that comprises of the world’s seven largest and advanced economies like Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. G-7 is an intergovernmental organization that was formed in 1975 by top economies of that time. Canada joined the G-7 group in 1976, and the European Union began attending in 1977.
Recently, USA president Donald Trump has stated that he wants to invite Russia, South Korea, Australia and India to join the G-7 summit, which could happen in September either before or after the United Nations General Assembly.
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Members
As mentioned earlier, permanent G7 member countries include the United States, Britain, France, Japan, Germany, Italy, and Canada. Apart from Canada, the first six countries were the original members of the G6. The first summit was held at Rambouillet, France, in 1975. Canada joined in 1976, and it was renamed G7. Russia joined in 1997 and it became G8. In 2013, the G8 became the G7. That’s because Russia invaded Crimea. Apart from nations, the leaders of important international organizations are also invited, including the IMF, World Bank, and United Nations.
Functions
- Group of Seven or G-7 offers the leaders of these nations the chance to come together and tackle the most challenging global issues of the time.
- Political leaders of G-7 countries come together annually to discuss important global economic, political, social and security issues.
- The G7 considers itself as a community of values which stands for security, peace, and a self-determined life all around the world.
- In the last 40 years, G-7 claims to have “strengthened security policy, mainstreamed climate change and supported disarmament programmes”.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How does the G7 reach its decisions?
Ans. The G7 does not reach decisions by majority vote. All the countries much reach a unanimous agreement on their summit declaration. If the decisions are not legally binding, their global impact should not be underestimated.
Q. What are the goals of the G7
Ans. The G7 sees itself as a community of values that stands for peace, security and a self-determined life all around the world. Freedom and human rights, democracy and the rule of law, as well as prosperity and sustainable development are key principles of the G7.
Q. Why was the G7 created?
Ans. G-7 group was created on France’s initiative during the first oil crisis. It was conceived as an informal forum for dialogue between the leading world economic powers, with the main aim of acting as a forum to coordinate economic and financial policies free of any specific protocol.
Q. What issues does the G7 address?
Ans. The G7 is a forum for concertation where common responses are found for major global challenges including peace and security, counter-terrorism, development, education, health, the environment and climate change.
