The G8 Summit and Japan

In the following article, Akira Kojima, managing director and editorial page editor of the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, evaluates the 2000 Kyushu-Okinawa Summit. In contrast to those critics who contend that the summit has deteriorated into an irrelevant and redundant international gathering, Kojima argues that the summit is even more important than it has ever been. In this evaluation of the 2000 G8 Summit, he outlines the role of the summit and, in particular, explains the significance of the summit for Japan, both for politicians and for the general public. He also discusses the rationale for the choice of Okinawa as the venue for the last G8 Summit of the twentieth century.