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China, Brazil and India knock on G8
door
By Mario Osava and Thalif Deen
SAO PAULO - China, Brazil and India, three major
players in the developing world, may be invited to join
the ranks of the world's most powerful group of nations,
the Group of Eight (G8), according to diplomatic
sources.
Although no formal decision has been
reached, there are strong indications the three
developing nations are potential candidates to join the
privileged group. "It is only a matter of time," a Third
World diplomat told IPS. "And it is also a matter of
political reality."
Asked if there was any truth
to the speculation, Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso
Amorim told IPS: "I haven't seen anything specific." But
he agreed that such a move would signal a broadening of
political power throughout the world: "I think it is the
recognition that you cannot attempt [to rule the world]
- not the G8, nor a G11 or G12 could do that either,
because those things have to be dealt with
institutionally."
"Let's just say, even to
tackle the tasks that will be discussed institutionally,
you can no longer gather the seven richest countries, or
eight counting Russia [which is an important country not
for its gross national product but for other reasons];
you cannot just have those countries decide," he said.
Also, added Amorim, today's world is very
complex and what happens in China, India or Brazil will
have an impact on rich nations. If the three countries
are invited, he said, "it is not to do us a favor, or
recognize our importance, but it is because it is
important for themselves."
If offered
membership, the three nations will follow in the
footsteps of Russia, which accepted a formal invitation
to join the then Group of Seven (G7) in June 2002.
The original seven, described as the world's
most industrialized nations, were the United States,
Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan. When
the G7 extended the invitation to Russia, it was
considered a personal victory for President Vladimir
Putin. Although his nation had taken part in several G7
meetings, it was not a full-fledged member.
Although there is no official word as to when
China, India and Brazil would be invited to join the G8,
diplomatic sources predict that it is likely to happen
in 2006, when Russia will host the G8 summit.
India and Brazil are also strong contenders -
along with Germany and Japan - for three new
veto-wielding permanent seats in the 15-member United
Nations Security Council. China is already one of five
permanent members - in the company of the US, Britain,
France and Russia.
The proposed UN move,
according to several diplomats, would dramatically
change the political and economic equation on the
international scene.
The possible expansion of
the G8 to G11 is also being viewed as a bold diplomatic
maneuver by Washington and the European Union (EU) to
neutralize the growing clout of the G20 developing
nations, a bloc dominated by China, India and Brazil.
The three countries are also an integral part of
the 132-strong Group of 77, alongside some of the
poorest of the world's poor, including Sierra Leone,
Uganda, Zambia, Chad and Liberia. If invited to join the
G8, the three nations may be forced to leave the G77,
the largest single grouping at the UN and the collective
voice of the developing world.
In 1994, Mexico
became the first developing nation to exit the G77 when
it joined the rich nations' club, the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development. It was followed by
South Korea in 1997. Last month, two other members,
Cyprus and Malta, were forced to leave the group after
they became members of the EU.
Strangely, China
- a country that may soon have the world's fourth
largest economy, behind the US, Japan and Germany - is
still a member of the G77. It has also long been tipped
to join the G8, because of its tremendous economic
clout.
UN secretary general Kofi Annan himself
is ambivalent about China and whether it should be
deemed a developing or a developed country. At a press
conference last week for the meeting of the UN
Conference on Trade and Development, Annan said: "In
fact, the group that is here sees China as a developing
country and part of them." But, he added, there are
countries that will debate that. "And there are
countries that see China very much as part of the
developing world and China does have lessons for the
rest of the members."
(Inter Press
Service)
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