LONDON, June 9. /TASS/. The Group of Seven industrialised nations has become 'a talking shop' for western leaders seeking to enhance their global dominance, Marcus Papadopoulos, British political expert and editor-in-chief of Politics First magazine, told TASS.

"The G7, ultimately, is a talking shop and a PR opportunity for the leaders of the Western world to discuss amongst themselves how to enhance the West's global hegemony and to relay to their respective publics how the world is in 'safe hands' with the West in charge," Papadopoulos said.

"Ever since the end of the Cold War, the US has been trying to weaken and subdue Russia hence NATO's expansion eastwards." he said. "So when Russia was a member of the G8, its views were never genuinely respected - Western leaders simply put on a facade. Russia's voice was officially listened to but was constantly sidelined when key decisions were taken by the US."

Papadopoulos said the G20 was "a more effective way to discuss the world's challenges because its membership is far more diverse than the G7 and is not confined to Western countries."

"Further to that, Russia's opinion and concerns on numerous issues are heard and supported by countries such as the BRICS," he added.

"The West, led by the US and then Britain, cares little for what Russia thinks - they demonstrated that by advancing NATO to the western borders of the Russian Federation, by constructing a missile defence system in Europe which is aimed at the Russian strategic nuclear deterrent, by attacking and/or undermining Moscow's traditional allies -Yugoslavia and Syria - and by establishing a firm presence in Ukraine which constitutes a terrible threat to Russian national security," he concluded.