Now that the G-20 multilateral format has taken the lead in managing the world economy, many commentators are eager to do away with its predecessor in that role, the Group of Eight (G-8). Such a focus, however, neglects
the G-8's important security functions. Since the 1980s, the group has given birth to major initiatives promoting global peace and security. The G-20 lacks the unique assets that have made the G-8 so effective in this area.
The G-8 now includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States. The absence of some of the world's rising economic powers -- such as Brazil, China, and India -- rightly calls into question the G-8's ability to direct the international economy. But the group's membership roster still includes most of the world's great military powers. They account for three-fourths of the world's annual military spending, host the leading defense companies, and even after their recent round of reductions, possess some 90 percent of the world's nuclear weapons. ...