ROME: The Group of Eight summit next month in Italy will discuss terrorism and nuclear non-proliferation, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said Tuesday.
“During the session limited to the G8 members, we will adopt line of action, notably a shared position against terrorism and its radicalisation, and we will accord particular place to non-proliferation of (nuclear) weapons,” he told a news conference.
The discussions may serve as a basis for a review of the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Frattini said.
The club of rich nations will also focus on the world financial crisis and global warming, he said.
“The G8 will cover three main pints: new rules to avoid a new financial crisis, a new approach to the environment and bringing Africa in as a political interlocutor and not just an aid recipient,” Frattini said.
After the venue for the summit was moved from the Sardinian island of La Maddalena to the epicentre of the April 6 earthquake — the Abruzzo capital L’Aquila — host Italy has asked participants to limit their delegations to 25 members, Frattini said.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi made the surprise decision to shift the venue to L’Aquila as a show of solidarity with the quake victims and said the cost savings would go towards reconstruction in the disaster zone.
The first day of the G8 summit is traditionally reserved for the eight leading industrialised nations — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States.
On the second and third days the meeting will expand to include emerging nations.
“On the last day there will be up to 24 or 25 heads of state,” Frattini said.
