On May 7–8, 1977, a G7 (Group of Seven) summit meeting took place in London. The “Downing Street Summit,” as it was called, gave newly elected U.S. President Jimmy Carter his first opportunity to appear on the international stage. In their joint declaration, state and government leaders described curbing inflation and creating jobs as their most urgent tasks. In order to reduce their dependence upon petroleum imports, energy was to be saved. Additionally, more energy—especially nuclear energy—was to be produced. The main point of contention between Carter and Schmidt was nuclear proliferation; against the objections of the Carter administration, the Schmidt government approved the export of nuclear technology valued at more than 10 billion U.S. dollars from the Federal Republic to Brazil. The photograph shows Jimmy Carter (front left), Helmut Schmidt (front right), Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher (back left), and U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance (back right) at the residence of the American ambassador in London.