FINLAND: Emerging Asian powers shy away from committment on climate change at ASEAN summit

European and Asian leaders called on Monday (September 11) for a redoubled effort to tackle global climate change, but emerging Asian powers shied away from binding themselves to any firm commitments to cut greenhouse gases. Leaders representing more than half the world economy adopted a wide-ranging declaration after a two-day summit in the Finnish capital, calling for "the widest possible cooperation" to fight global warming. The summit, hosted by EU president Finland, sought to nudge emerging Asian economies to adopt cleaner technologies to limit greenhouse gases -- which trap heat in the atmosphere -- and urged European countries to share energy-saving technology. China and other emerging Asian countries have been unwilling to consider mandatory limits on their greenhouse gas emissions, saying they do not want to stifle economic growth to solve a problem they say is caused by developed countries. Asked about their willingness to accept mandatory caps on greenhouse gas emissions, both the South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stressed their willingness to adopt alternative energy sources but avoided a direct answer on mandatory caps. South Korea was looking to alternative energy sources, including nuclear power. Greenpeace said the climate declaration was too vague. The Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) groups EU states with the 10- member Association of South East Asian Nations plus China, Japan and South Korea. Finish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen said the group was set to grow. "We intend to invite India, Pakistan, Mongolia and the ASEAN secretariat on the Asian side and Bulgaria an Romania as acceding EU member states of the European side to participate in the ASEM process. I am convinced that this enlargement will not only widen but make the Asia - Europe relations deeper," he said. The Asia-European summit, attended by more than 30 leaders, also urged Iran to suspend uranium enrichment and called for North Korea to return to six-party talks on its nuclear programme. European states pressed China to improve its human rights record, but the summit itself focused on boosting economic relations, rather than on the divisive political issues. Beijing and the EU agreed in talks on Saturday (September 9) to negotiate a new treaty governing their growing links, but China insisted economic talks should be insulated from political matters. Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he raised concerns about China's human rights record at a one-to-one meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Monday. China has said it will ratify the U.N. treaty once it has reformed its judicial system. But international rights groups say Beijing has paid only lip service to the rule of law amid a crackdown on dissidents and discontented citizens. China announced rules on Sunday demanding foreign media seek approval from its state news agency to distribute news domestically and warned against news reports that "endanger national security", raising international alarm about media controls. The assembled leaders, who also discussed terrorism, observed a silence to mark the September 11 attacks. After the official closing ceremony, the Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi confirmed this was to be his last official trip as a prime minister abroad. "As a prime minister this is my last foreign trip," said Koizumi. "When the new prime minister becomes the leader of the LDP (Liberal democratic party) I will not comment or put pressure on the selection of ministers of the cabinet. The new prime minister has to listen to others views and he has to decide for him self," he added. Koizumi steps down on Sept. 30 and his successor has not been chosen yet.

ITN Source | September 12, 2006

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