Heiligendamm Process
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The Heiligendamm process is an initiative that will institutionalize high level dialogue between the G8 and the five most important emerging economies, known as the O5 (Outreach 5) [1] composed by China, Mexico, India, Brazil and South Africa; and the establishment of a common G5 + G8 platform at the OECD.
Talks between the two groups happened sporadically, but now the G8 and G5 will meet regularly. Innovation, freedom of investment, development in Africa, and energy efficiency and technology to reducing CO2 emissions are the four main issues this process will report in the next two G8 summits. A progress report will be presented at the 2008 G8 Summit in Japan; a final report on the results of the dialogue will be put forward at the G8 Summit in Italy in 2009. German Chancellor Angela Merkel supports this process, not at least by saying that "we can not get by, or shape globalization in a humane way, without each other".
Most recently on August 28th 2007, French president Nicolas Sarkozy in a foreign policy statement proposed that China, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa and India should become members of G8: "The G8 can't meet for two days and the G13 for just two hours.... That doesn't seem fitting, given the power of these five emerging countries." Nevertheless, for the time being (2008) formal enlargement of G8 is no realistic political option since G8 states have diverging positions on this issue. The US and Japan have been against enlargement, Great Britain and France actively in favour, whereas Italy, Germany and Canada are reserved.
