Last week's visit to Japan by German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a sobering lesson in G8 politics. Germany currently holds the G8 presidency but will pass the baton to Japan in January.

While it is uncertain whether Abe will still be in position to receive the presidency, he will certainly benefit from studying Merkel's recent performances in Japan and China.

Merkel's visit to Japan wasn't predominantly a Germany-Japan meeting, although both sides discussed bilateral matters, such as joint efforts to reform the U.N. Security Council or Japan's status as a partner country at the upcoming Hannover Messe industrial fair in Germany in 2008. Rather, the meeting offered a valuable opportunity for a detailed briefing on G8 topics to be given from the president to the successor.

Both sides agreed upon this in advance, but somehow the Japanese media and public had expected Merkel to focus almost exclusively on environmental matters, a topic that was featured highly at the last G8 meeting in Heiligendamm, Germany, from June 6 to June 8.

Merkel, it should be noted, was formerly Germany's environment minister. So for her to come to Japan and speak about the environment was expected. She did so with enthusiasm and an impressive display of expert knowledge. But she did not constrain her comments to this issue only.

Instead, she discussed several important G8 topics, including the situation in Africa, transparency in the financial sector, intellectual property rights, or the fight against international terrorism, with special emphasis on the situation in Afghanistan. Merkel did so not only in the closed-door meetings with Prime Minister Abe on Wednesday, but also with leaders of the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) on Thursday.

Even in her public speech at the German-Japanese Nikkei Symposium on environment and growth in Tokyo, she moved beyond environmental issues and offered her views on a wide range of political and economic topics on the G8 agenda.

In a similar manner, Merkel's decision to visit China just prior to coming to Japan may have surprised some of her hosts.

Unlike her predecessor, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Merkel raised the sticky question of human rights in China, and even went as far as meeting with known government critics and dissidents. It was a bold move, and certainly put pressure on her hosts in an area they have long sought to avoid.

Perhaps Merkel, having grown up in the former East Germany, felt she could not turn a blind eye to the still patchy record of political freedom in China.

In so doing, Merkel presented herself as a truly global leader who understands how global politics — especially G8 politics — work.

While it is important to name and push for single issues and their resolution at a certain time — such as for carbon dioxide reduction in Heiligendamm — it is likewise important to continue discussions in all other major areas.

Combining the opinions of the various G8 states into a common position is a challenge for every G8 presidency, and one that can be achieved only with persistence and over time. This is even truer for issues that hinge on direct engagement from other important countries as well, such as agreements on carbon dioxide reduction, which needs to include non-G8 nations like China and India.

Even more remarkable was Merkel's insistence on taking matters head-on, and involving herself in things that some might argue are beyond her role.

Human rights is clearly an issue of concern primarily to the Chinese, but it is also one of the principles upon which the democratic values of the G8 are founded. Although China is not a G8 member, that Merkel dared to address the question shows formidable courage — or brashness — depending on your point of view.

Merkel's direct, as well as indirect, message to Japan as the next holder of the G8 presidency was a simple one: Leading the G8 is more than just the fight against global warming.

In Japanese politics, media or society in general, there has long been a tendency to focus on simple prominent tokens, rather than larger realities. This must not happen to Japan's G8 presidency in 2008; the G8 as an organization must deal with more issues than just global warming, although it is certainly a very important one.

Prime Minister Abe and DPJ President Ichiro Ozawa, who Merkel met Thursday morning, have heard the message from Germany. It is to be hoped that the Japanese media and public did as well. Perhaps they will refrain from looking only at the environment and forcing Abe (or his successor) to neglect other pressing issues.

One of these is the emergence of strong Asian players on the global stage, including India and China, and the future orientation of Central Asia. Within the G8, Japan clearly has to play an important role in this matter.

This might be too much to expect from her Japanese counterpart, but the upcoming G8 meeting at Lake Toya in Hokkaido should address a wide number of global issues and agree on creating more than just clean air. It should offer a chance for Japan to demonstrate its leadership on a wide spectrum of issues.

Jochen Legewie is president of German communications consultancy CNC Japan K.K.