Canada says G20 summit to be held in Toronto

Next year's summit of the Group of 20 developed and developing nations -- which Canada is co-chairing with South Korea -- will be held in Toronto on June 26 and 27, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Monday.

Canada, which will also chair the smaller Group of Eight summit next year, had initially announced the G8 summit would be held in the small town of Huntsville, Ontario, north of Toronto from June 25 to 27.

Ottawa subsequently agreed to host the G20 as well, prompting officials to predict the meeting would have to be held in a larger venue than Huntsville.

Harper's announcement -- made during a visit to South Korea -- did not mention the G8 summit, which officials had previously told Reuters would most likely be cut back to a one-day event. No one at the Canadian foreign ministry was immediately available for comment.

South Korea will host a second G20 summit in November. World leaders agreed in Pittsburgh in September that the G20 would become the primary global forum for dealing with the economy, leaving the G8 to focus on foreign policy. - Reuters