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1st Day of the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit
Japan-UK Summit Meeting / Japan-Germany Summit Meeting
Outreach Working Session / Other Events


Monday, July 7, 2008
Photograph of the Japan-UK Summit Meeting Photograph of the Japan-Germany Summit Meeting Photograph of leaders gathering for the outreach working session
Photograph of the outreach working session
Photograph of the Japan-South Africa Summit Meeting Photograph of the Japan-Algeria Summit Meeting Photograph of the Japan-Nigeria Summit Meeting
Photograph of the G8 Leaders Participating in a social event Photograph of Prime Minister Fukuda receiving the Declaration from a representative of the J8 Summit Photograph of a Yosakoi Soran dance performance

Click photographs to enlarge


Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda held talks with Mr. Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, at the venue of the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit.

At the talks, the leaders exchanged opinions on major subjects on the agenda of the G8 Summit, based on the Japan-UK bilateral meeting held in June of this year in London, focusing in particular on climate change, the issue of the surge in food and energy prices, assistance to Africa, and political issues of Zimbabwe.

Afterwards, Prime Minister Fukuda held talks with Dr. Angela Merkel, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Prime Minister Fukuda conveyed to Chancellor Merkel that he would like the G8 leaders to send out a clear message that they will cooperate in tackling various issues such as the global economy, global warming, and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In response, Chancellor Merkel stated that the issue of food and crude oil prices is an important topic for discussion at the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit, that she wishes for appealing discussions to take place on the issue of African development, and that Germany intends to play a constructive role at the G8 Summit for its success.

Later, the outreach working session was held, opening the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit, with the participation of the leaders of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Republic of Ghana, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Republic of Senegal, and the Republic of South Africa, the United Republic of Tanzania, as well as the President of the European Commission, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and the President of the World Bank, in addition to the G8 leaders. At the working session, which followed the outreach working lunch, the leaders discussed global warming issues, the issue of the surge in food and crude oil prices, and poverty countermeasures and other African development issues.

After the outreach working session, Prime Minister Fukuda held talks individually with Mr. Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika, President of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, and Mr. Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

In the evening, Prime Minister Fukuda hosted social events, inviting the G8 leaders and their spouses. The events started in a hotel room at the venue, joined by the representatives of the Junior 8 (J8) Summit, in which 39 junior and senior high school students from 15 countries participated. Mr. Shiro Kuriwaki and eight other J8 representatives from the G8 and other countries handed over the J8 Chitose Declaration, which was compiled at the J8 Summit, to the G8 leaders. Afterwards, the participants moved to the fountain square outside, where they enjoyed a Yosakoi Soran dance performance and traditional hand-held large fireworks. The G8 leaders then returned inside the hotel, where they and their spouses deepened their friendships at the G8 social dinner, closing the first day of the G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit. @

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