Prime Minister returns home after G-8 Summit

New Delhi, July 10 : Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh arrived here late last night after attending the G-8 Summit in Hokkaido, Japan.

During his three-day visit, the Prime Minister met leaders of various countries, including Russia, Britain, Germany, France, and host Japan.

On the sidelines of the Summit, Dr. Singh also met US President George Bush, and both talked about the India-US nuclear deal, and how important it was for both the nations.

Both leaders also talked about free trade, the Doha Round, and how important it was that nations such as India and the US found common ground to make sure protectionist sentiments don't wall us off from the rest of the world.

The Group of eight nations also supported India over the Indo-US nuclear deal and said in a statement that they decided to help India meet its growing energy needs.

The statement said that G-8 nations look forward to working with India, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Nuclear Suppliers Group and other partners to advance India's non-proliferation commitments and progress so as to facilitate a more robust approach to civil nuclear cooperation with India to help it meet its growing energy needs in a manner that enhances and reinforces the global non-proliferation regime.

The leaders described climate change as one of the great global challenges and said they confronted the interlinked challenges of sustainable development, including energy, food security and human health.

ANI