APEC fails to agree on details in battle against climate change+

SINGAPORE, Nov. 15 Kyodo -
Pacific Rim leaders pledged Sunday to accelerate efforts to deepen the
integration of their economies, including to study creating a free-trade area,
but fell short of promising any detailed commitment to the battle against
climate change.

As their two-day summit closed in Singapore, the 21-member Asia-Pacific
Economic Cooperation forum apparently revealed a serious gap between developed
and developing countries over how they could share the burden of cutting
greenhouse gas emissions. The result is feared to affect a key U.N. climate
change conference next month in Copenhagen.
The leaders also resolved to develop a comprehensive strategy to ensure
sustainable and ''inclusive'' growth for the region while renewing the pledge
to reject protectionism in international trade, which is on the rise after the
global economic crisis.
They expressed concerns over the stalled Doha Round of free trade talks under
the World Trade Organization and urged efforts to turn political will to
successfully conclude the eight-year-old talks next year into tangible progress
in the negotiations.
Climate change was high on the agenda at the summit. But the leaders'
declaration fell short of details, suggesting differences between some members.
The leaders ''reaffirm our commitment to tackle the threat of climate change
and work towards an ambitious outcome in Copenhagen,'' it said. A draft of the
declaration obtained by Kyodo News earlier mentioned their target of cutting
global carbon emissions to ''50 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.''
In a modified version of the draft, however, those specific figures were
dropped, saying only that the emissions must be reduced ''substantially,''
before even that word was deleted from the agreed statement.
''There were some countries which urged changes in the statement at the very
last stage,'' a conference source said Saturday, without specifying the
countries.
Chinese President Hu Jintao told other leaders that developed nations should
lead the battle against climate change, stressing ''common but differentiated
responsibilities'' for developed and developing economies, according to the
text of his remarks released by the APEC secretariat.
Developing economies, including China, the world's largest carbon emitter,
''should, in the light of the actual circumstances, explore a path of
sustainable growth suited to their own conditions and development stages,'' Hu
said.
Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who chaired the summit, declined to
comment on what was discussed by the leaders. But he said, ''We are leading up
to Copenhagen and I'm sure that countries will be reserving some of their
cards, particularly their bottom cards to be shown in the right moment.''
Among other participants were Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, U.S.
President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
Obama announced that the United States will host the 2011 APEC summit in
Hawaii, after Japan assumes the forum's rotating chairmanship in 2010.
Hatoyama told the leaders that as the chair of APEC next year, Japan hopes to
''discuss sustainable growth as a main pillar of strategy'' for the region, a
Japanese official said. It will host the 2010 summit in the port city of
Yokohama.
Delivering a speech later in the day, Hatoyama, who has proposed the creation
of an ''East Asian community,'' suggested the United States is among potential
members of the envisaged regional grouping.
''The presence of the United States has been playing and will continue to play
an important role in ensuring the peace and prosperity of Asia, including
Japan,'' he said.
Heated debates are going on over which grouping would be the most suitable to
deepen their regional cooperation and integration, with China widely seen as
cautious about participation by the United States.
The APEC leaders reaffirmed their commitment to promoting free and open trade
and investment. They will ''continue to explore building blocks towards a
possible Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific in the future.'' But they also
said an analytical study by the group has recognized ''the challenges of
establishing such an agreement.''
On the global economic condition, the leaders said that ''our robust policy
responses have helped to set the stage for recovery'' but added that the
''recovery is not yet on a solid footing.''
The leaders agreed on the need for more unified measures to ensure
''inclusive'' growth with both developed and developing members and all
segments of societies benefiting from regional economic integration.
APEC will draw a ''comprehensive long-term growth strategy'' next year,
effectively tasking Japan as the next chair with drafting the framework of the
strategy and identifying the issued to be handled with priority, including
assistance for small companies, improvement of social safety nets and the offer
of job training to the poor.
As for international trade, the leaders renewed their resolve in the
declaration to ''firmly reject all forms of protectionism,'' or the measures to
excessively protect domestic industries.
APEC also demanded a speed-up in the negotiations at the WTO to successfully
conclude the Doha Round next year, saying the members of the international body
must turn their ''high-level political commitment'' to the talks into
''substantive progress.'' The round, launched in 2001 in the Qatari capital
with the aim of helping growth in poor countries by enhancing trade, were
originally scheduled to be concluded in 2005.
APEC groups Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia,
Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the
Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and
Vietnam.
==Kyodo