EU seeks twin-track push with Indonesia for climate deal

(BRUSSELS) - EU Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso urged Indonesia Monday to join forces for a twin-track campaign to get developed and developing nations to do more to secure a vital climate deal in Copenhagen.

"I think if we work together, the European Union and Indonesia can make an important contribution to a positive outcome at Copenhagen," Barroso told a joint press conference after talks with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

"I think Indonesia can say to other developing countries, including big developing countries... that they should do something more," Barroso said, without naming China, India or others by name.

"We are going to say the same to developed countries."

With the UN climate summit in Copenhagen hitting major turbulence, Barroso warned against the very real possibility of a failure to achieve a meaningful deal on tackling global warming.

"How are we going to look on Friday or Saturday if there are more than 100 heads of state and government from all over the world and that what we say to the world is that it was not possible to come to an agreement, I think it is unthinkable."

The solution, he said "is to ask everyone to make a supplemental effort to go to the outer limits of their possibilities.

The European Union and Indonesia have both made ambitious pledges on cutting greenhouse gas emissions; the EU pledging 20 percent cuts by 2020 and Indonesia 26 percent cuts in the same time-frame.

Both have said they are ready to go further under certain conditions. Europe wants the rest of the developed world to make big pledges while Jakarta wants more external funding.

Indonesia is the third biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, after China and the United States -- 80 percent of its emissions are the result of deforestation.

The Indonesian president agreed that developing nations should come up with "real concrete" measures to help mitigate climate change, adding that "everybody has the responsibility to save the only planet we have."

Both men said it was worth considering financier George Soros's plan, unveiled last week, to free up to 100 billion dollars (68 billion euros) for poor countries to combat climate change and cope with its impacts.

However Yudhoyono was reluctant to proclaim his nation the exemplar for the rest of the developing world or to go into detail on his discussions with emerging nations' leaders on the subject of tackling global warming.

He also stressed that every aspect needed to be taken into account, not just polluting levels, and that the developed world needs to dig deeper in its pockets.

"I make communication with other developing countries," he said.

"We need to know exactly the capabilities of these countries, the emissions they produce, the economic resources they have and also the need of the developing countries to improve the welfare of the people.

"Developing countries in my view should take the lead and give the resources to the developing nations."

EU leaders at a Brussels summit last week agreed to give developing nations more than seven billion euros over the next three years to tackle climate change, in the hope that the move will spur leaders meeting in Copenhagen to offer more themselves.

On a longer-term basis the European Union estimates that it will take 100 billion euros per year by 2020 to mitigate the problem and deal with catastrophic effects such as flooding, desertification and drought.