G-8 foreign ministers to wrap up annual talks Thurs

Japan Policy & Politics, June 17, 2002

WHISTLER, Canada, June 13 Kyodo

Foreign ministers of the Group of Eight (G-8) major powers will wrap up their two-day talks Thursday discussing regional situations such as that on the Korean Peninsula, G-8 officials said.

The ministers, meeting at this western Canadian ski resort in British Columbia, are also expected to address promoting arms control, disarmament and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction as part of their annual dialogue.

The participants are then scheduled to hold a joint news conference in the early afternoon. Canadian Foreign Minister Bill Graham, the chairman of the talks, will issue a summary of the meeting's results, the officials said.

The aim of the talks is to lay the groundwork for the annual G-8 summit June 26-27 in Kananaskis, Alberta. The G-8 consists of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Russia and the United States.

On Wednesday, the foreign ministers reaffirmed their commitment to promoting international measures against terrorism, pledged to continue supporting the reconstruction of Afghanistan, and agreed to continue urging India and Pakistan to ease tensions along their border.

The ministers also agreed that an international conference seeking to break the vicious circle of violence between the Israelis and Palestinians should take place as soon as possible, the officials said.

They agreed that sustained global efforts are necessary to tackle terrorism, and stressed the need to provide technical aid to developing countries to foster capacity building as well as efforts to prevent terrorists from gaining access to weapons of mass destruction.

After the opening session of the Whistler talks, the ministers issued a progress report on the fight against terrorism. In it, they summarized the international community's efforts since the Sept. 11 attacks on the U.S.

''Efforts to combat terrorism do not end here,'' the document concludes. ''Further action is required from all nations -- individually and collectively -- to sustain a truly effective global offensive against terrorism.''

On Afghanistan, they expressed hope the ongoing emergency loya jirga, or national assembly, will be successful in choosing a transitional government to replace the interim authority, and that the country can achieve peace and stability with continued assistance and support from the international community.

In a separate statement on Afghanistan, the ministers reiterated their commitment to helping establish a ''sovereign, stable and prosperous Afghanistan with democratic institutions and a government representative of all Afghan people.''

In addition to Graham, the participants in the Whistler meeting include fellow G-8 newcomers Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi and French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin.

Others are U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, German Vice Chancellor and Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer and Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov.

Italy is being represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Roberto Antonione, on behalf of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who doubles as foreign minister but will attend only the Kananaskis gathering.

The European Union (EU), attending as an observer, has sent Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Pique, European Commissioner for External Relations Chris Patten, and EU foreign and security policy chief Javier Solana. Spain is the current EU chair.