What is G7? Its History, Members and Agendas
Group of seven is an international forum including the world’s most powerful economies. Founded formally in 1975 in the aftermath of the first oil shock that resulted in the global energy crisis, its members set about to work together to prevent such disasters from happening in the future.
Members
The initial members of this group were six namely Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United States and thus was called G6. However, Canada joining it in 1976 made it G7. Throughout its history, Russia too joined it in 1998 but its membership was suspended in 2014 when it carried out the annexation of Crimea. It was retracted back to being G7. The United Nations representative is invited as an honorary guest each year.
Emerging industrialized economies like Australia, China, South Korea, Mexico, Brazil, and India too have been invited on some occasions as guest participants.
Background of Formation
In the year 1970, an energy crisis due to the OPEC oil embargo ensued, causing a recession in the global economy. The bigger players on the world’s stage who were far more industrialized — thus oil-dependent — than the rest of the world suffered the most. Amid this looming crisis, these countries decided to sit together and facilitate each other on macroeconomic initiatives in response to the collapse of the fixed exchange rate.
An annual summit takes place with a rotating presidency each year. The host country is bound to issue the communique at the end outlining the subjects that were agreed upon in the session.
Agendas
With the upper hand, these countries have over the rest of the nations, they undoubtedly have the potential to be extremely powerful if their efforts are coordinated.
The threat of the USSR, its invasion of Afghanistan, and the Iraq-Iran wars were the primary issues that glued them together when it came to the agendas of the organization. Grouping now faces major problems like the Russian invasion of Ukraine and rising China in the face of liberal democracies.
Achievements
The members of G7 account for 40% of the world’s wealth shared among a very low population of 10% compared to the total population of the world. Its members largely set the tone for global politics and ranging issues menacing the world.
You may not have heard much of the achievements made by the organization mainly due to the lack of cooperation among its members, it does have some landmarks under its name. Such as the G7 providing 300 million dollars in 1997 to build the containment of the reactor meltdown at Chernobyl.
Two years later in 1999, the G7 cooperated to establish both the financial stability forum and a group consisting of major national financial authorities like central banks and finance ministries.
The most striking initiative of all launched in 1996 by the G7 has been the debt reduction initiative for 42 heavily indebted poor states.
Future
It’s important to figure out since G7 has no specific setup or an ongoing body to discuss such issues on a multi-year basis so it’s centered more on basically the agenda of the day alongside the agenda of Host Nation as well.
G7 has no legal existence and is based only on a treaty. It has since its formation extended its scope to discuss issues like climate change, security, and peace, now a coronavirus pandemic.
As its influence languishes across the world because of the many other industrial economies emerging on the map of the world, it comes laden with ambiguity about what the future might hold for G7.
