L'AQUILA, Italy (AFP) — 1321 GMT - Dave Clark writes: I was one of only five reporters to ask Japan's Prime Minister Taro Aso a question, and the only non-Japanese speaker. No surprise there, though. I was told I'd been chosen to ask a question two days ago, I submitted it yesterday and was escorted to a pre-arranged seat near the microphone by his press team. I hear I went out live on Japanese television, so a big hello to my new fans out there. I was the big bloke with the beard who wanted to know about global trade imbalances.
1251 GMT - Not everyone is enamoured of the international summit circuit, it seems. Obama tells reporters he favours expanding the G8 to include major emerging economies, and streamlining the circuit to reduce the number of summits.
1341 GMT - Chris Otton writes: The green shoots of recovery are still pretty fragile, the US president says: "While our markets are improving, and we appear to have averted global collapse, we know too many people are still struggling... So we agreed that full recovery is still a way off, that it would be premature to begin winding down our stimulus plans."
1227 GMT - Denis Barnett writes: The US president says the G8 nations are seriously concerned about the "appalling events" taking place in Iran since last month's disputed presidential vote.
1218 GMT - Denis Barnett writes: The leaders have agreed to increase the food security package to 20 billion dollars, Berlusconi says.
1208 GMT - An AFP correspondent reports: Around 3,000 anti-globalisation protesters and local residents begin a march on the G8 summit, setting off from Paganica, where one of dozens of tented camps have been set up to house victims of the April 6 earthquake, watched by a large force of police.
The march was originally organised by local citizens' groups to draw attention to the slow progress of reconstruction three months after the quake, which killed 299 people and left 70,000 homeless.
1151 GMT - Showing perhaps a little-known interest in football (of the soccer kind), President Barack Obama says he plans to go to the 2010 World Cup football tournament in South Africa.
1142 GMT - Denis Barnett writes: U2 frontman and Africa aid campaigner Bono seems impressed with President Obama but less with the G8 response on hunger. "Of all the enemies of civilisation, hunger is the dumbest, the most mocking of all we hold true. We are delighted President Obama has returned to this, the most fundamental of rights... But he can?t do it alone. Not all his peers have stepped up here," he says, adding he hopes for a "bigger, better, and more unified response" at the upcoming G20 summit in Pittsburgh.
1123 GMT - Paris Correspondent Dave Clark says: Once under way, one international summit seems much like another, only the catering changes. Perhaps surprisingly, the food for the press in L'Aquila is not a patch on the sauerkraut and sausages we got at the NATO gig in Strasbourg. It seems the contract went to a motorway services firm. The press centre bar is, however, excellent. I just grabbed an espresso doppio and a square of focaccia on my way to see the Japanese prime minister.
1119 GMT - Chris Otton writes: So many leaders are at the summit that their entourages were caught up in a scrum as they emerged from talks and headed towards golf buggies provided by organisers. Sarko bustled off his feet. Kadhafi surrounded by bevy of young Libyan women.
1058 GMT - Dave Clark writes: Just to give you a flavour of the angry mood in the aid community, Oxfam's Emma Seery says: "The Africa discussion was relegated to an insultingly token session. How can we take the G8 seriously when all they offer Africa is broken promises and photo opportunities?"
1056 GMT - Dave Clark writes: The various aid agencies, Oxfam, ActionAid, Save the Children, seem really unimpressed with the G8's 15 billion dollars for Third World farming. They've been warning us all week that the leaders' sums don't add up, and we were hit with a blizzard of angry press releases -- clearly prepared beforehand -- before the meeting even ended.
1020 GMT - Dave Clark reports: The G8 nations and 19 partner countries announce they've agreed a package of measures worth at least 15 billion dollars to boost agriculture and food security in the developing world. "There is an urgent need for decisive action to free humankind from hunger and poverty," the statement says.
1015 GMT - Anna Smolchenko reports: Details emerge of the sleeping arrangements among the G8 leaders, some of whom have been sharing digs at a converted army barracks.
A Russian source says that President Dmitry Medvedev and France's Nicolas Sarkozy have been breaking the ice while sharing the amenities in a cottage on the base. The Kremlin chief occupies the first two floors while Sarkozy's delegation is on the two upper levels. "It's been a good chance for the two to get to know each other before the president (Medvedev) goes to France next spring," says the source.
1007 GMT - Chris Otton writes: Mubarak urges the G8 to freeze repayments due on loans to Africa in order to help them through the economic crisis. African borrowers should enjoy "preferential terms," says the veteran Egyptian leader, and urges the West to reject protectionism in trade.
0958 GMT - Chris Otton writes: Organisers say the leaders plan to stage a minute's silence for the earthquake victims at the end of the summit.
0955 GMT - Gina Doggett in Rome writes: French First Lady Carla Bruni comes in for withering criticism from the right-wing daily Il Giornale today for snubbing the official programme for Group of Eight spouses. "Someone tell the first lady that snobbery to the nth degree where we come from is called boorishness," the paper said. On Thursday, the other G8 first ladies including Michelle Obama toured the city devastated by an April 6 earthquake, while Bruni planned to visit the disaster zone on Friday.
0942 GMT - Katherine Haddon writes: British Prime Minister's wife Sarah Brown twittering that she has twice turned down veal served at official meals at the G8 summit. "Am hoping that no veal served at lunch again today -- have declined it twice this trip as just feel very strongly about it," she writes.
0925 GMT - A correspondent reports that large numbers of armed police and riot squad carabinieri have lined all the major roads towards the summit venue - which is a military barracks on the outskirts of L'Alquila. Nobody is taking chances here.
0910 GMT - Chris Otton writes: Meanwhile Murphy's law strikes at the media centre. It's the closing day and a power cut hit the media centre - all computers and the air conditioning has gone down - just ahead of the start.
0900 GMT - Chris Otton writes: The body language between some of the leaders appears distinctly cool. Ethiopian leader Meles Zenawi and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak are sat side by side and not doing much talking. Libyan leader Moamer Khadafi is there and he met with Gordon Brown this morning.
Brown's spokesman earlier said, "The PM said African countries were not responsible for the global recession and we have a responsibility to make sure they are protected from it."
0858 GMT - Chris Otton writes: The leaders are taking their seats in the main summit centre. Obama has got Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan on his left and Algeria's President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on his right and is also chatting to India's Manmohan Singh.
As leaders of the world's richest nations hold the final day of their G8 meeting in Italy, AFP reporters are reporting live from the summit venue in the Italian town of L'Aquila.
Contributors:
- Anna Smolchenko, Moscow Correspondent
- Chris Otton, Deputy editor Europe-Africa
- Dave Clark, Paris Correspondent
- Denis Barnett, Europe-Africa Correspondent
- Gina Dogget, Rome Correspondent
- Katherine Haddon, London Correspondent
- Leigh Thomas, Brussels Correspondent
Copyright © 2009 AFP. All rights reserved. More »
