Rich countries urged to honor protocol commitment

Representatives from China, Brazil,India and South Africa along with Sudan, the current chair nation of G-77, have reached a consensus on climate change ahead of the UN summit in Copenhagen.

At the conclusion of their two-day meeting in Beijing, the participants called on developed countries to honor targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions for the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.

The representatives agreed that the Kyoto Protocol should continue to have effect and that rich countries should cut emissions in accordance with the targets of the second commitment period which starts from 2013. They noted that the outcome of the UN summit should include long-term cooperative actions on climate change,and the provision of financial and technological support.

The participants also highlighted the special needs of least developed countries, small island countries and African nations, for tackling climate change.

Smoke billows from a factory in France. The European Environment  Agency (EEA) has said that the 15 European Union (EU) members which  pledged to curb greenhouse gases by an overall eight percent under  the UN's Kyoto Protocol are on track to beat the target. (AFP/File/Joel Saget)