How G-8 may unify around Iraq

The plan drew howls of criticism from Arab leaders when it was leaked in February. In negotiations since, European diplomats have toned down the impression that reforms can be imposed from outside, and they emphasized cooperation between the G-8 and Arab partners. They have also inserted a reference to the need for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

European diplomats, however, have not set much store by the US-launched initiative, and are anxious not to be too closely identified with it, even in its reformed version. "Hostility to Washington is at such a pitch in the Middle East that if you want to do anything useful there, you must not tie it in any way to the United States," says Francois Heisbourg, head of the Foundation for Strategic Research in Paris.

However, the G-8 leaders are likely to endorse some less controversial ideas, such as opening public schools in Pakistan, establishing a democracy corps for the region, and educating more women. "You can't disagree with that stuff," says Charles Kupchan, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington and a former member of the National Security Council.

The leaders are also likely to agree on the need to keep trying to unearth terrorists. "There has been a lot of cooperation on fighting terrorism," says Hormats.

As the G-8 nations have done in other summits, they will also discuss Africa. On Thursday, they will have lunch with leaders from Algeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, and Uganda. Rice says they will discuss such topics as trade, famine, and agricultural productivity, as well as HIV/AIDS.

In the past, heads of state spent much time discussing economic issues. This was the original aim when the events started 30 years ago, during another spike in oil prices. "George Shultz was Treasury secretary, and he said economics have an even more important role in the world today in fashioning our lives and directions and political values," recalls Stephen Danzansky, formerly one of the "sherpas" helping to negotiate the agenda. "Heads of state need to understand these issues and begin to understand the dynamics of what free markets are all about," says Mr. Danzansky, who now heads up the Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity at The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston.

Although Rice didn't include economics as a discussion point this year, there will be plenty of potential topics ranging from the high price of oil to the implications of rising interest rates. The biggest issue on the transatlantic trade agenda, getting the Doha round of multilateral trade talks going again after their collapse in Cancún last year, has basically been settled: The European Union and US agreed last month to eliminate agricultural export subsidies to try to tempt developing countries back into talks.

• Peter Ford in Paris contributed to this story.

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