| 23rd G8 summit | |
|---|---|
 | |
.jpg) Family photo of the G8 leaders | |
| Host country | United States |
| Dates | June 20–22, 1997 |
| Follows | 22nd G7 summit |
| Precedes | 24th G8 summit |
The23rdG8 summit was held on June 20–22, 1997 inDenver,Colorado,United States. The venue was the newly constructedDenver Public Library in downtown Denver.[1] The locations of previous G8 summits to have been hosted by the United States include:Dorado, Puerto Rico (1976),Williamsburg, Virginia (1983), andHouston, Texas (1990).
TheGroup of Seven (G7) was an unofficial forum which brought together the heads of the richest industrialized countries:France,Germany,Italy,Japan, theUnited Kingdom, theUnited States, andCanada starting in 1976. The G8, meeting for the first time in 1997, was formed with the addition ofRussia.[2] In addition, thePresident of the European Commission has been formally included in summits since 1981.[3] The summits were not meant to be linked formally with wider international institutions; and in fact, a mild rebellion against the stiff formality of other international meetings was a part of the genesis of cooperation between France's presidentValéry Giscard d'Estaing and West Germany's chancellorHelmut Schmidt as they conceived theinitial summit of theGroup of Six (G6) in 1975.[4]
The G8 is an unofficial annual forum for the leaders of Canada, the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.[3]
The 23rd G8 summit was the first summit forBritish Prime MinisterTony Blair and, as it was formed with the addition of Russia,Russian PresidentBoris Yeltsin.
These participants were the "core members" of the 23rd G8 summit:[5][1][6]
Traditionally, the host country of the G8 summit sets the agenda for negotiations, which take place primarily amongst multi-nationalcivil servants in the weeks before the summit itself, leading to a joint declaration which all countries can agree to sign.
The summit was intended as a venue for resolving differences among its members. As a practical matter, the summit was also conceived as an opportunity for its members to give each other mutual encouragement in the face of difficult economic decisions.[4]
A tangible legacy of this summit is theDenver Public Library's main building, an existing library which was transformed into a "masterful composition of new forms". The library has become recognized as one of Denver's city icons.[7] The dramatic post-modern structure was designed by architectMichael Graves.[8] The building was initially used as the summit site; and afterward, it was opened to the public as the city's central library.[9]
The appearance of Boris Yelsin representing Russia as part of the G8 was transformative. Yelsin himself said, "I want very much for it to be written: 'Denver conclusively agrees that the G-7 is transformed into a G-8.'"[10]
In 1997, the summit leaders proclaimed that forests "continue to be destroyed and degraded at alarming rates;" and the G-7 called for the elimination of "illegal logging," but there is little evidence of follow-up action.[11]
For some, the G8 summit became a profit-generating event; as for example, the officialG8 Summit magazines which have been published under the auspices of the host nations for distribution to all attendees since 1998.[12] The special dining opportunities for the summit attendees were created by chefs hired especially for this occasion. PresidentBill Clinton’s state dinner was held atThe Fort Restaurant[13] and offeredbuffalo,trout, and friedsquash blossoms filled with wildmushrooms andrattlesnake meat.[14]
Denver's "Summit of the Eight" planned ahead to ensure that sensitive documents wouldn't fall into the wrong hands because those attending would have the option of shredding any documents before discarding them. The summit organizers leased more than 25 new paper shredders from a Denver company that sells, services and leases the machines—and this was the largest order of its kind for the small local business.[15]
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