KANANASKIS (Canada), June 27: Group of Eight leaders met in a heavily-guarded Canadian Rockies resort on Wednesday to confront wide rifts over Middle East peacemaking, dented financial markets and to pursue their “anti-terrorism campaign”.

Divided over the fate of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, but seeking common ground on the fight against “terrorism”, the leaders promised economic minnow Russia full membership of their rich nations’ club by 2006.

In a late breakthrough, they clinched an agreement to provide 20 billion dollars for a programme to keep Russia’s vulnerable excess plutonium deposits out of the hands of terrorists, German delegation sources said.

Under the plan, the United States will put up 10 billion dollars of the required financing over 10 years, they said.

Other G8 countries minus Russia — Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Germany and Japan — are to provide a further 10 billion dollars. If they fail, other countries will be asked to chip in.

Thousands of police and troops patrolled forests to protect the G8 leaders, tucked 100kms away from protesters in oil boom town Calgary, from the threat of terror attacks or violent demonstrations. Equipped with surface-to-air missiles and radar, troops enforced a no-fly zone of 157kms radius and sealed off a 6.5 kilometer security perimeter.

Security fears were intense after warnings of new terror attacks on the United States and its interests by Al Qaeda.

Terrorism was a leading theme on the summit’s first day, with G8 leaders pledging to bolster safety on the “critical yet fragile” global transportation system.—AFP