What are Sherpas and yaks doing at the G8?

The word “Sherpa” typically refers to the Nepalese porters who help climbers reach the top of the Himalayan Mountains.

The word “Sherpa” typically refers to the Nepalese porters who help climbers reach the top of the Himalayan Mountains. But here at the annual summit of the Group of Eight nations, Sherpas and their sidekicks, the sous-Sherpas and yaks, are different sorts of characters altogether.

These are the mostly faceless bureaucrats responsible for developing the agenda and statements their leaders are considering this week at the annual meeting of the leading industrialised nations. Their work, conducted over the past year in face-to-face meetings, conference calls, and countless e-mail exchanges, will help determine whether the final G8 summit of the Bush presidency is a success.

Some of the most accomplished diplomats in the world are Sherpas. The French Sherpa this year, Jean-David Levitte, is a former ambassador to Washington now serving as diplomatic adviser to President Nicolas Sarkozy.

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The US Sherpa this year is a relatively new face on the international scene. Daniel Price, 52, a well-regarded trade lawyer in Washington, joined the administration last year as the top White House staffer on international economics after years of gentle prodding from old friend Joshua Bolten, Bush’s chief of staff. The two worked together in the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George HW Bush, and Bolten had been trying to recruit his pal into the administration from its early days.

Bolten finally succeeded last year, after telling Price he could no longer call to complain about the administration unless he joined up. Price has become the White House staff point person on such sensitive issues as trade, food and assistance for Africa— the latter a top priority for Bush.

In recent months, much of Price’s focus has been on working with other Sherpas to lay the groundwork for the Group of Eight summit here. It will focus on some hoary standards (climate change and nonproliferation) and some new crises (the run-up in food prices and world economic problems).

To that end, Price has already been to Japan four times, accompanied by a personal assistant, a yak in G8 argot. While the Sherpas meet in one room, the yaks are in another, taking instructions by e-mail from them. Then there are sous-Sherpas for finance and foreign affairs, as well as country political directors (such as the undersecretary of state in the United States), all of whom meet to discuss issues that can come up at the summit.

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“The constant questions that run throughout our Sherpa meetings are, first, what are the key issues to be addressed, and second, what actions can we, the G8, take that will make a positive contribution?” Price said in a brief interview on Friday, just before he left Washington on Saturday with Bush.

The Sherpas have been trading communique language for weeks on contentious issues such as global warming, looking to bridge competing approaches favored by Europe, Japan and the United States. The Japanese host, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, is looking for a strong statement on goals for cutting greenhouse gas emissions; Bush wants to make sure developing countries such as China and India are included in any new climate change initiative.

New issues pop up: One late entrant is Zimbabwe. Officials anticipate from the world leaders gathered here a strong denunciation of its President Robert Mugabe and his widely discredited reelection.

Price has little use for the notion that there is not much to be accomplished at this year’s summit because Bush is a lame duck. “This is the president of the United Statesm,” he told reporters at a pre-trip briefing at the White House last week. “He has stood for some very important principles and policies. He has been a catalyst within the G8 for a number of those principles and policies.”