G8 Summit of no expectations

The G8 is suffering from a malaise, that could hardly come at a worse time for the world, and that malaise is driven by the personalities around the table by Nenad Pejic Tuesday, July 08, 2008 When U.S. President George W. Bush and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev met on the sidelines of the G8 summit in Japan, they agreed only that they share some areas of agreement and some areas of disagreement. What more could anyone have expected? Summits of the Group of Eight leading industrialized economies are sometimes closely watched, as the world looks on with the hope -- even expectation -- that this intimate group of the world’s most powerful politicians might have some impact on the crises of the day. But not this time. A pall has settled over the G8 in Japan. Even though global energy markets are out of control, food prices... [read full story]