Conflict in the Middle East and terrorism around the globe are threatening to crowd the problems of Africa to the sidelines of the Group of Eight agenda, despite Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's pledge to keep Africa the central focus.
Yesterday's car bombing at a U.S. consulate in Pakistan underscores the fact that the U.S.-led war on terrorism is far from over and will remain at the top of the minds of leaders when they gather in Kananaskis, Alta., in two weeks.
At the same time, leaders will be seized with the conflict in the Middle East, including calls for a peace conference.
But one senior Liberal official said yesterday that Mr. Chrétien will ensure the issue of African development gets a full airing, while allowing time for leaders to deal with other pressing global issues.
"This is not an either-or situation," the official said.
The Prime Minister said at a fundraising dinner in Ottawa this week that the problems of Africa simply demand the attention of the leaders of the world's eight large powers.
"I want to be able to have a good conference and make sure that the agenda will not be distracted, and that we will care and show that we want to put Africa back on the map, because what's going on there is completely unacceptable," he said. "We have to make sure they join the world."
Progressive Conservative Leader Joe Clark said the Prime Minister cannot insist that his agenda dominates when issues such as global security are so important.
"He's the host; he's not the dictator," Mr. Clark said. "He should push the African agenda; it's an important agenda . . . but he should not try to shove aside the other legitimate concern of other countries about security matters."
Mr. Chrétien has been consulting leaders over the past few weeks, in telephone calls to Mr. Blair, U.S. President George W. Bush and French President Jacques Chirac.
Federal officials say they are confident the G8 leaders will accept an African-led initiative called the New Plan for African Development, though they sought to lower expectations of a big new commitment of Western aid.
However, officials said they also expect security to be a key issue. At the summit, Canada and the United States hope to highlight a 30-point security plan that has been hammered out between Deputy Prime Minister John Manley and U.S. security czar Thomas Ridge.
One official said G8 leaders are expected to emphasize joint efforts to fight terrorism through information-sharing, shared enforcement on immigration and customs controls, and improved surveillance.
The Middle East is unlikely to be on the official summit agenda, which will deal with issues such as economic conditions and Africa, which was highlighted at last year's summit in Genoa, Italy. But it will no doubt dominate other discussions.
There are essentially two agendas: the official one, which is shepherded by the Canada as host country, and the unofficial one, which dominates informal discussions and may focus on on more explosive problems.
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