What is G7?

• IAS NEXT, Lucknow
• 14, Dec 2021

Reference News:-

G7 has sought to present a united front against Russian aggression toward Ukraine.

• This decision was taken at the recent G7 meeting, attended in person by the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his counterparts from France, Italy, Germany, Japan and Canada.
• This decision comes amid international concern that Russia could invade Ukraine. However, Russia denies planning any attack.

What’s the issue?

• Ukraine is at the centre of a crisis in East-West relations as it accuses Russia of amassing tens of thousands of troops in preparation for a possible large-scale military offensive.
• Russia accuses Ukraine and the United States of destabilising behaviour, and has said it needs security guarantees for its own protection.

What is G7?

• The G7, originally G8, was set up in 1975 as an informal forum bringing together the leaders of the world’s leading industrial nations.
• Composition: The summit gathers leaders from the European Union (EU) and the following countries: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• The major purpose of the G-7 is to discuss and deliberate on international economic issues. It sometimes acts in concert to help resolve other global problems, with a special focus on economic issues.

How did G7 become G8?

• Russia was formally inducted as a member in the group in 1998, which led G7 to become G8.
• However, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s condemnable act of moving Russian troops into eastern Ukraine and conquering Crimea in 2014 drew heavy criticism from the other G8 nations.
• The other nations of the group decided to suspend Russia from the G8 as a consequence of its actions and the group became G7 again in 2014.