EG4
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| Economic Group of Four Arroban |
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The Economic Group of Four (EG4; Rodarian: Gruppo Economico di Quattro; Anikatian: 네 국가의 경제 그룹, Ne gukgaui gyeongje geurup), unofficially known as Arroban (Arthurista, Rodarion, Belhavia, Anikatia ), is a diplomatic and economic forum for the four of the largest economies in the globe according to the Global Monetary Fund: Anikatia, Arthurista, Belhavia, and Rodarion. The group meets primarily to discuss economic issues, and has been used as a platform for RCO-CDI dialogue, upon the entry of Anikatia as a member, it came to represent a western-southern-eastern dialogue platform. The term "EG4" may refer to the four countries in the group as a whole or to the annual summit meeting of the EG4 heads of government. In addition to the annual meeting, several summits between major ministers of the EG4 member states occur throughout the year. EG4 finance ministers and central bank governors meet every quarter, and periodic meetings occur between EG4 foreign ministers and EG4 environment ministers.
The EG4 represents the four of the wealthiest nations in the world, representing a combined net wealth of $XX trillion, over XX% of the net global wealth according to the Laeon Investment Global Wealth Report (May 2014). The GMF's managing director may also be invited to the summits; the current director, Elizabeth Callis, has attended three annual meetings between the heads of government.
The EG4 has become the target of significant anti-capitalist criticism due to the nature of its operation and policies emerging from its summits. Additionally, the group is criticized by many nonmember nations, particularly smaller economies or countries whose economies do not experience the full effects of solutions for economic issues discussed at EG4. Many analysts in these countries have stated that world economic issues are topics for a more collective and representative body rather than for the wealthiest few nations.
Between 2005 and 2014, the economic group only contained Belhavia, Arthurista, WCS, and Rodarion until November 2014, when Anikatia was invited to join the group as a means of expanding the groups global representation and reach in terms of discussion and policy recommendations as well as concurrently losing the WCS as a member-state, as it withdrew during its transition into the FWS.
History
EG4 (1985 - 2005)
The EG4 can find its ancestral roots with the original Group of Four talks formed in 1984, between Rodarion, Arthurista, the WCS, and Belhavia with regards to the Neoliberal Revolution and the intended reforms in the Rodarian economy, which at that time had seen small and isolated reforms in the 1970s which had proved successful. The first meeting was held in Dakos on the 4 May 1984, where Belhavian President Julian Settas, Rodarian Consul Nicolae Ponta, Western President Philip J. Anderson, and Arthuristan Prime Minister XXX discussed the reforms required to truly open Rodarion up to the world economy and result in successful integration.
The quartet met again in 1986 in Romula to discuss the success and failures of the Rodarian reforms; however, by this time the Rodarian economy was growing by 7% per annum, and had become the fastest growing economy in Lusankya. The second meeting also covered other global issues, including the South Ashizwe Border War, Islamic extremism, and the fight against global communism. The meeting was such a success that the quartet agreed that a meeting would take place every year in a rotating nature. In 1987, the quartet met in Chaleur, where they further discussed Rodarian reforms and other economic issues, including rising oil and gas prices; however, both Settas, Anderson, and XXX discussed the resurging authoritarianism within Rodarion, though they avoided outrightly criticizing Ponta.
In the 1990s the meetings continued, but mostly focused upon the so-called Détente of the Cold War with the rise of the more moderate reformer Choi Kyu-sik in the DSRA. However, by the mid-1990s, Nicolae Ponta's administration was in turmoil over claims of rampant institutional corruption. Still, the 1990s saw Rodarion enjoy growth rates as high as 10%, and it was becoming clear to the Arthuristan and Belhavian governments that within a decade, Rodarion would become the third largest economy. Despite this sentiment, the G4 remained an informal platform for discussion of economic issues. In 1997, Nicolae Ponta's government fell and his party defeated at the general election after 42 years in government. Nicolae Ponta had been Consul for 13 years and seen through several different leaders from Arthurista and Belhavia; subsequently he was replaced with the liberal Cristian Diaconescu, who used the meetings to forward growing Rodarian trade prospects with the Free World.
In 2003, Rodarion became the fourth largest economy, overtaking the then-WCS. The same period saw limited Belfrasian growth in relation to Rodarian growth rates. In 2004, the Belhavian President and Arthuristan Prime Minister agreed that the G4 would have to become formalized into an entity for finance ministers, bank govenors, and national leaders to meet and discuss global economic issues. In 2005, the G4 became the Economic Group of 5 and a central pillar in international policy regarding global economics.
EG5 (2005 - 2014)
The goal of the EG5 was agreed to be fine tuning of short-term economic policies among participant countries to monitor developments in the world economy and assess economic policies. In 2008, Rodarion overtook Belfras as the third largest economy, effectively cementing the EG5 as the paramount economic meeting. Since then, the group has focused on finding solutions to global economic woes and developing policies that could be promoted to the rest of the world; however, since 2012, the EG5 has also taken numerous philosophical positions, with both Arthurista, WCS, and Belhavia supporting and representing the free-market-based economies and Rodarion being state capitalist, representing the mixed-market economies.
Between 2012 and 2014, the EG5 summits also covered the issue of "under-representation", that the group only focused on western economic issues and rarely took notice of the opinions of other major economies located in the north or the far-east.
EG4 (2014 - present)
At the 2013 Urbana Summit, the EG5 agreed to expand the group to include a member from the Far-East, in late 2013 the EG5 formally invited Anikatia, as the largest economy in the Far-East and an influential middle power. At the same time, the WCS underwent a fiscal crisis and dissolved into 7 separate Western market states, which terminated membership in the EG5.
Anikatia was formally inducted into the group, and the WCS formally withdrawn, at the 2014 Livada Summit, there the name EG4 was christened. It is sometimes referred to as "the Second EG4."
Role & Function
The EG4 is considered the world's foremost global economic institution of record, and has significant influence over governments, economists, investors and floor traders, and policymakers. Its influence dates to back to its founding in the late 1980s, when it included three of the top five largest economies by nominal GDP.
The group strengthened economic integration and the growing globalization of Pardes, and was instrumental in entrenching the Neoliberal Revolution's policies and attitudes as the norm in world economic policymaking by the early 1990s. Geopolitically, the group saw rising importance as a forum of dialogue between the CDI and the proto-RCO (then-WECA) in the 2000s. As such, while the group is ostensibly a forum for senior finance officials and central banking governors from all three nations, it has become a platform for the world's largest three economies to display stability, collaboration, and leadership on world economic and geopolitical management.
When the EG4 announces policies to be adopted by its four members, or general policy recommendations for the world economy, most key state, geopolitical, and private actors take note and often emulate or implement the EG4's approach.
Criticism
Criticism of the EG4 emerges from multiple angles, spanning the gauntlet of ideological, economic, political, philosophical, and geographical perspectives.
From the left, anti-capitalist critics of the group oppose its strong support and advocacy of neoliberal and free market policies and thought. They allege its capitalist vision is oppressing the workers of Pardes, and that it represents a crony oligarchic cabal that they argue is symbolic of what they consider a corrupt capitalist system.
From the right, libertarians and one-nation conservatives accuse the EG3 of opposing national interests and state sovereignty by congregating economic and geopolitical power in the hands of three leading global powers rather than respecting the decentralized, multipolar world. Many in the far right oppose the group on nativist or right-wing populist grounds, asserting the group biases the global political economy towards Emmeria, Belhavia, and Rodarion, or favors the global super-rich at the expense of local economies.
Geographically, many officials and thinkers from Far Eastern nations, such as Gratislavia and Kolenomai, accuse the group of favoring Western Pardes over the economies of the East, despite the fact that one of the EG4's members - Belhavia - is from South-Middle Pardes (albeit still in the western hemisphere). These individuals argue that the group concentrates global economic and geopolitical power in the West, and privileges Western Pardesi economies, countries, societies, and ideas over those of the East. This was later dismissed upon the introduction of Anikatia to the group, the first member from the eastern hemisphere to join.
Governments of some minor powers, as well as a few middle and major powers, allege that the EG4 acts as a unilateral "clique" that exclusively sets global policies without input or consultation from nonmember governments and other actors, and is an oligarchic elite that imposes its views and preferences on the rest of the world community with impunity. The governments criticize, in particular, the under representation of a majority of Pardes and the concentration of responsibilities and power among only the largest three economies.
The EG4 faces criticism from groups within its member nations as well. In both Arthurista and Belhavia, civil society groups and politicians have criticized Rodarion's membership, as it offers an immunity from international pressure over its authoritarian nature and its controversial human rights record. Emmerian economists have also criticized the EG3 for being soft on Rodarian currency manipulation and the use of state owned enterprises to spearhead entry into foreign markets, intellectual property theft, economic espionage and tough mercantilist policies towards trade. However Rodarian politicians and economists have responded, usually stating that opposition to Rodarion's membership in the EG3 is based on the widespread belief that liberal market economics is the only system to produce economic stability and growth; such analysts point out that Rodarian state capitalism has shown to offer long term stable growth and development.
Leaders of the EG4
- EG2.jpg
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Member country data
List by the Global Monetary Fund (2014)
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