The comments from China's special envoy to the December 7-18 UN summit in Copenhagen showed the sharp divide between rich nations and emerging countries and came after the United States indicated it would set targets for reducing emissions.

While defending China's refusal to accept mandatory emissions cuts at the meeting, Yu Qingtai accused developed nations of failing to fulfill pledges under the Kyoto Protocol which is meant to be replaced by a new deal in Denmark.

China is the world's largest overall emitter of greenhouse gases, but Yu pointed out that its per capita emissions were between one-third and one-fifth of developed countries.

"We are now approaching the end of 2009 and we have taken note that for a lot of European countries, the emissions reductions have not gone far, whereas for some countries they have actually gone up by a large margin," Yu said.

He said it was unlikely China would cut emissions for now.

"When a nation is in a period of fast-paced industrialisation and urbanisation, energy consumption and total emissions go up rapidly," Yu told reporters.

US President Barack Obama sought to boost hopes of a deal at the Copenhagen summit as he hosted India's leader at the White House a week after visiting China.

He said Tuesday that recent progress meant the world was "one step closer to a successful outcome in Copenhagen."

Countries must "reach a strong operational agreement that will confront the threat of climate change while serving as a stepping-stone to a legally binding treaty," he told a press conference with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

In a joint statement, Singh and Obama spoke of their hopes for a "comprehensive" deal at Copenhagen. The US president has yet to confirm his participation at next month's summit.

A senior Obama administration official said the US emissions target -- considered fundamental to any meaningful deal -- would not differ much from levels mentioned in legislation before Congress.

A House of Representatives bill, passed in June, calls for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020 and by 83 percent by 2050.

A slightly more ambitious bill before the Senate, but not due to be debated again until early next year, talks of a 20 percent reduction from 2005 levels by 2020.

The European Union has vowed to reduce emissions by 20 percent from 1990 levels before 2020, raising the target to 30 percent in the event of an international agreement. Japan has offered 25 percent, but attached conditions.

Australia, the world's heaviest per capita polluter, is attempting to rush legislation through parliament curbing emissions.

Greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and a wide range of other sources gather in the atmosphere and trap heat, a process that scientists say leads to global warming.

With the summit fast approaching and activists as well as scientists pushing for a deal to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, expiring at the end of 2012, a raft of studies warning of global warming's effects have emerged.

A group of doctors said Wednesday climate change will imperil health through malaria, cholera, heatwaves and hunger, but many problems can be eased or avoided if countries make wise policy choices.

Another report from scientists this week said the planet could be getting much hotter, much faster than anticipated only two years ago.

burs-mjs/co

Share This Article With Planet Earth

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Related Links

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News