Canada hopes G7 summit serves as springboard for new ideas

Canada hopes the upcoming G7 summit it is hosting will serve as a springboard for fresh ideas on key issues including climate change, the global economy and security, the lead organizer told AFP.

"The G7 serves well as a proving or testing ground for discussions that could eventually go into the G20 or the United Nations or international financial institutions," Peter Boehm, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's G7 representative, said in an interview with AFP.

"The beauty of these summits is that there is informal dialogue between leaders," said Boehm, who has participated in several past summits.