The G8 group of nations should focus on three serious and pressing issues, writes Vladimir Putin
At the beginning of 2006, Russia assumed the G8 presidency. We have suggested to our partners that we should focus on three serious and pressing issues: global energy security, combating infectious diseases, and education.
The establishment of a reliable and comprehensive system of energy security is clearly one of the strategic goals for the G8 and the world community as a whole.
It should be based on a long-term, reliable and environmentally sustainable energy supply at prices affordable to both the exporting countries and the consumers. In addition to reconciling the interests of stakeholders in the global energy interaction, we will have to identify practical measures aimed at ensuring sustainable access of the world economy to traditional sources of energy, as well as promoting energy-saving programmes and developing alternative energy sources.
A balanced and fair energy supply is undoubtedly a pillar of global security at present and in the years to come. We ought to pass on to the future generations a world energy architecture that would help avoid conflicts and counterproductive competition for energy security.
This is why it is essential to find common approaches to creating a solid and long-term energy base for our civilisation.
In this connection, Russia calls on the G8 countries and the international community to focus their efforts on developing innovative technologies. This could serve as an initial step in creating a technological basis for energy supply in the future, when the energy potential in its present form is exhausted.
Global energy security will also benefit from an integrated approach to enhancing energy efficiency of the social and economic development. The G8 made important progress towards elaborating it last year in Gleneagles, including, in particular, the adoption of the "Plan of Action" aimed at promoting innovation, energy saving and environmental protection. We find it crucially important to engage non-G8 countries, especially fast-growing and industrialising economies, in participating in the G8 initiatives and, particularly, in implementing the document adopted at Gleneagles. The way most people see it, energy security has mainly to do with the interests of industrially- developed countries.
However, it should be kept in mind that almost two billion people in today's world do not enjoy modern-day energy services, while many of them even lack access to electricity. Their access to many benefits and advances of civilisation has been virtually blocked.
Needless to say, energy alone would not solve the poverty problem. At the same time, lack of energy resources throughout different regions significantly hinders economic growth, while their unsustainable use may result in an ecological disaster on a global rather than local scale.
Lately, experts have been actively discussing ways of increasing energy use in developing countries through a more intensive development of non-conventional energy sources. And this is where assistance rendered by the G8 in developing and introducing alternative power facilities becomes ever so important.
Generally speaking, all of us should recognise and admit that "energy egoism" in a modern and highly interdependent world is a road to nowhere. Therefore Russia's attitude towards energy security remains clear and unchanged.
It is our strong belief that energy redistribution guided wholly by the priorities of a small group of most developed countries does not serve the goals and purposes of global development. We will strive to create an energy security system sensitive to the interests of the whole international community.
Basically, all it takes is for mankind to create a balanced potential in order to provide every state with sustainable energy supply, and international co-operation opens all avenues for that.
Throughout its history, the human race finds itself fighting against a genuine threat to its survival - that of the spread of infectious diseases. Yet our times are also plagued by the outbreaks of both known and new and highly dangerous diseases such as Aids, exotic viral haemorrhagic fever, microplasma infections, and bird flu. We would suggest the reactivation of efforts in this regard, including the adoption of a strategic action plan of the G8 to fight bird flu and prevent new human flu pandemics.
The uneven development of health systems, as well as unequal financial capabilities and scientific potential required to fight epidemics, lead to uneven distribution of global resources allocated to the fight against infections. Marked by a different degree of intensity in different regions, infectious diseases, working as a litmus test, expose social and economic problems, aggravate social inequality and contribute to discrimination.
In recent years, our world has suffered the devastation of earthquakes, floods and tsunamis with increasing frequency. Urbanisation, wider transport networks and industrial infrastructure make us much more vulnerable to these emergencies than before. They cause damage not only to the economy and social sphere; their heaviest toll is the outbreaks of infectious diseases, which claim thousands of lives. Therefore, we view as another priority the establishment of a global system for natural disaster warning and mitigating their epidemiological consequences.
Thought might also be given to the possibility of creating a unified infrastructure capable of responding to the emergence and spread of epidemic in a prompt manner. This infrastructure must include a monitoring, information and scientific methodology exchange system that can promptly respond to emergencies.
The so-called humanitarian crises, in particular related to military conflicts, are the root cause of many large-scale diseases. As a result, the threat of effective disease area spread is increased many times over. I am convinced that the G8 will be able to consolidate international efforts in dealing with such emergencies and give a strong impetus to multilateral interaction in this area.
Of course, the G8 should continue to promote scientific capacity-building and pool together intellectual and material resources of the world community for the development of new safe vaccines and promising highly-sensitive means to diagnose infectious diseases, as well as for the implementation of education and prevention programmes.
In a post-industrial information society, education becomes a prerequisite for success in the daily life and a major input into the economic development. It is one of the most important elements of a growing social identity, moral values and stronger democracy. At the same time, widespread illiteracy is a breeding ground for the advocates of inter-civilisational strife, xenophobia and national and religious extremism, and, in the final analysis, for international terrorist activities. It is important to formulate a wider and more systematic approach to education in both developing countries and the world at large.
In the conditions of growing mobility of world population and steady increase in migration, the problem of integration into a different cultural environment acquires special importance. Obviously, it is education that makes possible mutual social adaptation of various cultural, ethnic and confessional groups. Hence, special attention should be paid to upgrading education systems for the attainment of these goals both in developed and developing countries.
Many developing countries experience serious difficulties with introducing advanced education methods and information technologies. In this respect, it is necessary to make more efficient use of the most advanced resources, including the internet and other new means of information and knowledge distribution, in the field of education.
Russia stands ready to assist in mobilising the world community's efforts aimed at raising the quality andcompatibility of requirements to professional education as a key condition for the use and propagation of innovations.
Along with the three priorities on the agenda of the Russian presidency mentioned above, the G8 will continue in 2006 its work on such key issues as the fight against international terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. G8 will remain focused on the problems of development assistance as well as the prevention of environmental degradation and critical issues of the world economy, finance and trade. And certainly, as before, our efforts will remain focused on the settlement of regional conflicts, primarily in the Middle East and in Iraq, and on stabilising the situation in Afghanistan.
Russia is ready to contribute actively to further progress in this direction. Continuity and evolution - these words are the motto of the Russian presidency that has commenced.
Vladimir Putin is president of the Russian Federation