G8 SUMMIT: Putin Faces a New Generation of Ideas

By Kester Kenn Klomegah Reprint | | Print |

Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW, Jul 17 2006 (IPS) - It wasn’t such a junior G8 summit after all when President Vladimir Putin dropped in.

And, listened seriously to proposals emerging from the J8, the ‘summit’ of teenagers from the G8 countries (the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and Japan) held parallel to the G8.

The J8 summit, the second such after one at the G8 summit in Gleneagles in Scotland last year, was held over the weekend in Pushkin town outside St. Petersburg.

The proposal that seems to have caught Putin’s attention most was for businesses around the world to put aside a percentage of their profits for the developing world.

Industry could be invited to compete to give, the Canadian teenager who only gave her first name Christina suggested to Putin. “We believe there is a global competition programme, and that we need global industry Olympics. Everyone competes, and everyone will be passionate in the Olympics about competing and winning.”

This could help fund among other things a ‘learning without borders’ programme for children in developing countries, she said.

“We will be very pleased to take a closer look at your ‘learning without borders’ suggestion,” Putin said. “I would like to remind you that the G8 has already developed a similar programme called ‘education for all’. And we should see to what extent your ideas are compatible with what the G8 has already developed, and I am sure there is something new and interesting we can take into consideration.”

Putin said the global industry Olympics idea “sounds interesting.”

His unexpected visit was just what the delegates needed. Some had begun to doze off after hours of discussion with energy and industry minister Viktor Kristenko on matters such as nuclear fusion and hydrocarbons, according to media reports here. They ‘woke’ to find Putin among them, informally, without jacket and tie.

“We would like to present our opinion on some of the issues regarding the challenges posed by diseases, energy security, and tolerance as our contribution to creating a peaceful, beautiful earth without drugs,” Japanese representative Muneo Saito said.

Another representative spoke of the importance of information in the campaign against HIV/AIDS.

British member Sophie Harrison spoke of the need for increased use of alternative energy sources such as solar and wind energy and hydro-electricity. She said many of the young also supported nuclear power, but that “nuclear waste should be dealt with in its country of origin to decrease the risks involved with its transportation.”

Italian representative Elena della Site weighed in with the problem of water shortage and pollution.

And Putin heard from Russian representative Tatyana Ushakova about the need to build social tolerance. Russia is facing increasing xenophobia and racism, she said.

Putin was not going to let that pass. “I think we can truly say that tolerance is at the very root of Russian statehood. If the many different groups living on Russian territory had not managed to co-exist peacefully, we would not have been able to establish a centralised state.”

So far xenophobia and racism have not been countered effectively. Nor is Russia anywhere near setting aside 0.7 percent of its gross national income for development aid. And where the Russian government is not doing enough, few expect that Russian business will.

But at the least Putin encountered a new generation of ideas, and at the least he said they were worth considering.