EU warns of snubbing US climate talks without Bali deal
Bali conference graphic
(NUSA DUA) - The European Union (EU) warned Thursday that it may snub a US-led climate summit next month if key UN talks in Bali failed, saying it was "disappointed" at the US stance here.
"If we would have a failure in Bali, it would be meaningless to have the major economies meeting," said Humberto Rosa, secretary of state for the environment from EU president Portugal.
US President George W. Bush has called for a meeting of major carbon polluters next month in Hawaii as part of a White House initiative to fight global warming.
Rosa refused to describe the EU's stance as a boycott threat, saying in English: "We're not blackmailing no one."
The EU is pushing for a major UN conference wrapping up Friday on the Indonesian island of Bali to specify a goal for rich nations to cut carbon emissions by 25 to 40 percent by 2020 compared with 1990 levels.
The United States is the only industrialised power to boycott the Kyoto Protocol, whose current commitments expire in 2012, and has warned that would not support specific figures in the text which would "preclude options".
Rosa urged the United States to state more clearly their level of commitment to the success of the Bali process, and reminded the US delegation that "the world is waiting for it."
"For the moment, we feel disappointed ... we think we need clarity right now," he told reporters.
German Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel had earlier alluded to the possibility that European countries might boycott the Hawaii meeting if the US did not soften their stance on CO2 emissions targets.
"Without clear targets, there will be no major emitters meeting in January," he said.
Green groups accuse the US of trying to block proposals on a number of key issues and derail the Bali talks, which aim to lay out a plan for battling climate change when the current Kyoto Protocol commitments expire.
"The Bush administration's major economies meeting is on life support and it is time to switch off the machines," said John Coequyt, a campaigner with environmental group Greenpeace.
"The US is still blocking progress here on multiple fronts -- as can be seen from the latest draft text out today."
The major emitters' initiative was proposed last year by Bush, just before the G8 summit in Heiligendamm, Germany.
It staged its first meeting in Washington on September 28-29, where Bush proposed a further series of talks in 2008 whereby major polluters would set a long-term goal for tackling carbon emissions.
They would also discuss voluntary measures for helping poor countries acquire cleaner technology that would help them to stem their own greenhouse-gas pollution.
The EU and other supporters of the Kyoto Protocol have viewed the process warily, fearing it a potential Trojan Horse to the global forum on climate change, dominated by mandatory emissions curbs for industrialised countries and help for developing countries.
The major emitters comprise Australia, Britain, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and the United States. EU and UN representatives also attended.
They account for 80 percent of global emissions, according to US figures.
Under the US plan, the next meeting is to be held at the end of January in Hawaii, followed by another in Paris in February.
Bush also proposed a summit at which leaders would "finalise the goal" of long-term emissions, but this too was received with little enthusiasm and no date for the meeting has been announced.
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