Time for China to join the G-8

Frank J. Richter and Pamela Mar, World Economic Forum, The Straits Times, Asia News Network, Singapore

It is time for China to become a member of the Group of Eight club of industrialized countries.

Whether this is through the expansion of the Group of Seven to the G-8 or G-9 (depending on the membership of Russia), the time has come for China to take its place alongside the world's most exclusive and, perhaps, most powerful grouping.

China is already the sixth-largest global economy in terms of gross domestic product, ahead of Italy, and just behind Britain and Germany.

Moreover, its integration into the global economy has become more pronounced than ever: Today, exports account for over 22 percent of the economy, up from just eight percent in 1980.

And as China continues to develop, exports will only increase, to a point where exports per capita begin to approach that of economies its size.

China is fast becoming a proxy for the economic health of Asia, especially in light of the plan for a China-ASEAN free trade area.

Its economic importance is also underscored by the world's largest companies which, in times of retrenchment, have continued to invest heavily in China.

Outside of economics, China will help to define some of the key areas impacting life today and tomorrow. In the area of communications, it is quickly becoming the world's largest mobile telecommunications market, and Chinese is one of the fastest- growing languages of the Internet.

In terms of the environment, the country is second only to the United States with respect to the impact it can have on the state of the planet.

The integration of the world's largest developing nation would help lend it legitimacy, and ensure that discussions about the world's fate take into account the concerns of the developing world.

Clearly the admission of China is not a proxy for addressing the concerns of developing countries, but it is a significant first step.

Many in the West may claim that, as with the Olympics, admitting China would further legitimize a repressive regime and condone its refusal to play by international standards of conduct.

However, China's integration into the G-8 would give it a real stake at the global table -- and also more "face" as a global power.Only by becoming more representative will the G-8 be able to address the common challenges and lead the world's development in a way that is agreeable to the world's major stakeholders.

The West has many potential allies in China and the rest of Asia, but they must first show a willingness to deal on equal terms.