LONDON, December 3 (RIA Novosti) - The next meeting of G8 finance ministers will take place in Moscow in February 2006, Russian Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak said Saturday.
"Russia, which holds the G8 rotating presidency, will take part in preparing and discussing all items on the Moscow meeting's agenda," Storchak, who heads the Russian delegation at a financial meeting in London, said.
"Thus, Russia, which is not formally a member of the financial club but as its chair-in-office will for the first time discuss world economy problems on a par with other leading world powers," he said.
Storchak said the agenda would revolve round energy security and financial aspects of education and healthcare. Besides, the participants will discuss mechanisms to write off debts of Africa's poorest countries to international financial organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The deputy finance minister said the write-off initiative plan would be completed in 2006. In line with the plan, over $50 billion worth of debts would be written off from the poorest countries.
