G8 facts for kids
| The Group of Eight in 2014 |
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The Group of Eight (G8) was a special club of powerful countries. They met from 1997 to 2014 to talk about important world issues. This group was formed when Russia joined the G7.
The G8 became the G7 again in 2014. This happened after Russia was removed from the group. Russia was removed because it took over Crimea.
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What Was the G8?
The G8 was a group of eight major countries. These countries worked together to discuss big global problems. They talked about things like the economy, politics, and how to help people around the world.
How the G8 Started
The group began in 1975 with a meeting in France. Six countries were part of this first meeting. They were France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This first group was called the Group of Six, or G6.
In 1976, Canada joined the group. This made it the Group of Seven, or G7. The European Union (EU) also started joining the discussions in the 1980s. The EU could not host the meetings, but its leaders were always there.
Later, in 1997, Russia joined the group. The next year, in 1998, the group officially became known as the G8.
Invited Countries: G8+5
Sometimes, other important countries were invited to join the G8 meetings. In 2005, the UK government started inviting five big developing countries. These countries were Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa. When these countries joined, the meetings were sometimes called G8+5.
How the G8 Meetings Worked
The term "G8" could mean the member countries themselves. It also referred to their big yearly meeting. This meeting brought together the leaders of each country.
Hosting the Summit
Each year, a different member country would host the G8 meeting. The job of hosting rotated in a set order: France, United States, United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Japan, Italy, and Canada.
The country that hosted the meeting was in charge. They decided what topics would be discussed. They also organized other smaller meetings throughout the year. For example, the G8 finance ministers met four times a year. Foreign ministers and environment ministers also had their own meetings.
Why the G8 Changed
The G8 countries were some of the largest and wealthiest nations. They represented a big part of the world's economy.
The Rise of the G20
After 2008, another group became more important. This group was called the G20. The G20 includes 20 major economies from around the world. In 2009, world leaders decided that the G20 would become the main group for discussing global economic issues.
Russia's Suspension
In March 2014, Russia was suspended from the G8. This happened because Russia took over Crimea. After Russia left, the group went back to being called the G7. The G7 meeting in 2014 was hosted by the European Union instead of Russia.
See also
In Spanish: G8 para niños
