Largest G8 summit to tackle global issues

Updated July 7, 2008 11:33:00

Anti-G8 activists take part in a demonstration in Sapporo on Saturday ahead of the Hokkaido Toyako G8 Summit 2008. [AFP]

Each year the G8 summit seems to force the leaders of the world's largest economies to visit ever more dramatic and isolated locations for their gatherings.

North Asia correspondent, Shane McLeod, reports this year Japan has brought the leaders to the Windsor Hotel, an imposing five-star resort perched on a ridge above Lake Toya on the northern island of Hokkaido.

Protesters are being kept well away, forced to stage their demonstrations in the city of Sapporo, two hours' drive away.

So without the distractions that have dogged previous gatherings, the leaders should be able to get straight to business.

They'll be working through an agenda covering topics including the slowing world economy, spiralling commodity prices, and sharp rises in the cost of food.

Fukuda pushes climate change

Summit host, Japan, is keen to push new agreements on climate change and Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda insists he is working towards a substantial deal.

"As the summit will be very important I am determined to do my best and to share my views with the other world leaders," Mr Fukuda said.

The substantial deal Japan wants to finish with on Tuesday is an agreement from the G8 leaders to adopt significant targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions - of 50 per cent by 2050.

But it's from that point that it gets confusing.

Japan hasn't been prepared to name the base year for cutting emissions by 50 per cent.

The European leaders say it should be 1990, and look to the preliminary deal done at last year's G8 summit in Germany as the basis for the agreement.

US President George W Bush says he won't agree to anything unless China and India do too.

"I'll be constructive. I also am realistic enough to tell you that if China and India don't share the same goal then we're not going to solve the problem," Mr Bush said.

"We're working to see if we can come up with a constructive statement."

And that was after Mr Bush had held bilateral talks with the Japanese Prime Minister, who again called on the US leader to support the long-term goals.

Japan has looming problems with its short-term targets under the Kyoto protocol and has put a lot of effort into the long-term CO2 targets and believes investments in technology like geo-sequestration and nuclear power could make it a realistic goal.

Environmental groups say the 50 per cent reduction is too little, and says if Japan wants to show it's serious it should make an immediate decision to cut its own emissions by 20 to 40 per cent within the next two decades.

If the G8 leaders don't make progress on their own, they'll have a number of other international leaders in Hokkaido over the next few days that they can consult.

Among them will be Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, who is just one of the 14 other international leaders invited to make the Hokkaido summit the largest G8 ever staged.

You can find the full story at the Connect Asia website: http://radioaustralia.net.au/connectasia