G-8 nations speak loudly, but disagree on carrying a stick

There may have been some diplomatic progress made at the meeting of the G-8 leaders in France this week, but unless the Western economic giants are willing to stand together on important issues such as nuclear proliferation in rogue states, it will have been just another meeting.
There were encouraging signs that some of the pre-Iraq War tensions are being dissipated. President Bush and French President Jacques Chirac, the host, not only managed to spend time in the same room together, they sat side-by-side through many of the sessions.
When Bush left for the Middle East before the closing session, British Prime Minister Tony Blair took his seat.
The G-8 nations -- comprising the seven largest economies in the world, plus Russia -- are a natural alliance. By and large they share a common lifestyle, and they share a common responsibility to much of the rest of the world.
That responsibility to help undeveloped nations become more prosperous is not only a moral one, but a practical one. No one can prosper for long in a world racked by turmoil, in a world in which the haves are seen as oppressors and enemies by the have-nots.
Recognizing that, the heads of state at the G-8 summit took positions aimed at feeding and providing medical care for the residents of poor nations, especially in Africa, and providing development funds for their governments.
Need for strength, unity
But the most pressing issue remains how to prevent underdeveloped nations, most notably North Korea and Iran, from pouring their limited resources into the development of nuclear arsenals.
There is clear agreement that it is not in the world's best interest to have those nations join the fraternity of nuclear powers. But they remain nearly as divided over how to do that as they were over how to contain Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
Once again, the old Europe's leaders place a premium on pursuing diplomatic initiatives. Meanwhile, one senior U.S. official took the most bellicose reading of the G-8 position paper imaginable -- that a reference to possible "other measures" against states developing destructive weapons was code-language endorsing the use of force.
"This interpretation, my dear sir, seems to me to be extremely daring," the French president said at the closing news conference.
Somewhere between the my dear sirs of the French and the saber rattling of the United States, a strong and unified position against nuclear proliferation in states run by madmen and religious fanatics is going to have to be reached.