Others should match EU's efforts on climate: Van Rompuy

(LISBON) - Other countries should follow the European Union's lead and make comparable efforts in the fight against climate change, the EU's new president said Tuesday.

"We have to deal with other urgent questions," Herman Van Rompuy told reporters in Lisbon after a meeting with Portugal's Prime Minister Jose Socrates.

"The most important of course is climate change."

Last week EU leaders agreed a package of 7.2 billion euros (10.6 billion dollars) in aid to help developing countries tackle global warming.

But the Group of 77 developing nations -- actually a caucus of 130 states that includes China -- said the proposal failed to address the issue of setting up long-term financing mechanisms.

"We were very generous as to the financial means for the least developed countries. We are very ambitious for decreasing CO2. Of course other countries have to make comparable efforts."

Before his visit to Lisbon Van Rompuy also met Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero in Madrid. Spain will take over the six-month rotating EU presidency on January 1.