Leaders from the Group of Eight countries, along with the Presidents of the European commission and council, have completed the first day of their summit. The meeting is being held in France in the coastal resort of Deauville. Major topics include the political situation in Middle East and north Africa, the debt crisis within EU and Japan's post-quake reconstruction.
The Libyan conflict was high on the agenda for the G8 leaders. But a rift emerged as to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's future.
France insisted Gaddafi should leave, saying the earlier he goes, the more choices he has, but Russia said the NATO bombing campaign has gone too far.
Despite that, Russia announced that its Western partners in the G8 have asked it to take on a mediation role in resolving the crisis.
As for Japan's nuclear crisis, Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan briefed the leaders on the latest situation in the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant. He called for global cooperation in enhancing nuclear safety.
The G8 leaders noted that they want more stringent international rules on nuclear safety. The particiants also agreed to conduct stress tests on nuclear reactors to test their resilience to earthquakes and other natural disasters.
But the question of who will become IMF's next boss was not up for discussion during the gathering. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the decision on who will lead the IMF is not up to the G8, saying they will not even discuss the issue during the session in Deauville.
The two-day summit will wind up Friday with a Deauville statement issued by all the participating countries.