The Seven-power Summit: Origins And Development (1975-1996)

This dissertation discusses the origins and development of the seven-power summit and explores the interaction between it and the contemporary international political economic pattern, from which we can get across the impact of it.This dissertation is divided into four chapters except for preface and conclusion.The preface expounds the meaning of theme, the situation of study and the basis of material.The first chapter: 'The origins of the seven-power summit'. The generation and institutionalization of the seven-power summit in the 1970s was encouraged by three structural transformations of international system: Deepening of interdependence among the seven countries bringing about many transnational issues; Comparative declination of USA which requests 'cooperation after hegemony'; Politicization of international economy making an impact on bureaucracy, which makes it necessary for the paramount leader to care for international economic affairs. The collapse of the Bretton Woods monetary system, the impact of the first oil crisis, and 'stagflation' crisis in the 1970s were direct reasons to the generation of the seven-power summit. In the circumstances, the seven-power summit came into being.The second chapter: 'From Rambouillet to Tokyo: economic-issue summit'. After the first summit at Rambouillet in 1975, the seven-power summit institutionalized in the late 1970s. The seven countries failing into 'stagflation' crisis, how to collaborate every country' s economic policies in order to achieve economic recovery became summit' s main issues. The summits which were mainly concerned about economic issues might be regarded as 'economic-issue summit'. From Rambouillet to Tokyo, the seven-power summit was ambitious in economic-policy collaboration and achieved satisfactory performance, which lessened the passive impact of the international economic crisis.The third chapter: 'From Venice to Toronto: political-economic-issue summit'. From the beginning of 1980s, monetarism and supply-side which were against government' s excessive intervention in economy became the guide-lines of the seven countries' economic policies, so the seven-power summit' s ambition in economic-policy collaboration declined. At the same time, redeterioration of west-east relations brought political issues into the seven-power summit' s agenda,so 'economic-issue summit' became 'political-economic-issue summit'. In economic-policy collaboration, because of much competition among the seven countries economic policies, there were little specific results. In political issues, there were some disputes among the seven countries, but they could reach agreement in general in front of common enemy (Soviet).The fourth chapter: 'From Paris to Lyon: multiple-issue summit'. From the late 1980s, abrupt changes took place in the world politics. How to promote the transition of Soviet (Russia) and Eastern Europe and how to build the new international order became the major issues in summits. At the same time, deepening of economic globalization not only made traditional economic issues such as macroeconomic policies, international trade, international finance, and debts of the developing countries etc still important in the seven-power summit' s agenda but also made global issues such as environment, drug, nuclear proliferation, and international terrorism etc became the new focuses of the seven-power summit. The multiplicity of issues became the main feature of the seven-power summit, so the summits might be named as 'multiple-issue summit'. There were many common interests in the transition of Soviet (Russia) and Eastern Europe and building of the new international order among the seven countries, so they could achieve treaty easily. In economic-policy collaboration, the collapse of Soviet makes 'political pressure of compromise' disappear, which brought into some difficulties in achieving agreement, so summits made little progress in economic-policy collaboration. Because global issues endangered every country and they are impossible to be settled by some country, th...