Australian Embassy, Lisbon

Press Release - 6 August 2007

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Australia welcomes US climate change meeting

Australia has welcomed the US move to convene a meeting of major economies next month, to determine a common approach towards global climate change.

Australia’s Foreign Minister, Mr. Alexander Downer, said that Australia would join 13 leading economies and the UN at the meeting in Washington DC on 27 and 28 September, which would take forward President Bush's initiative to address the environmental, energy security, and economic aspects of climate change.

Mr. Downer said that with Australia's emissions less than two percent of global emissions, climate change challenges demanded an effective global response. He said Australian actions to reduce emissions, while important, would have little meaningful impact if they were a not part of wider international action.

“Australia has led calls for a new global agreement that sees all of the world's major economies act to mitigate climate change,” he said. “An effective international framework is one that includes all major emitters, takes account of differing national circumstances and goals for sustainable development and allows countries to adopt a range of policies to reduce their emissions.”

“Australia wants global action and we will pursue an effective international framework through all available avenues, including through the UN Framework Convention on Climate Chance (UNFCCC). This is why climate change is the key focus for the Asian-Pacific leaders at APEC Summit in September in Sydney.

“Climate change is much more than an environmental issue - it's an economic one.” Mr. Downer said.

The Washington meeting on 27-28 September would be the first in a series of meetings convened by the USA designed to contribute to a new global agreement under the UNFCCC by 2009.

The following countries have been invited to Washington: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, European Union (Current EU President and European Commission, plus France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom), India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, and South Africa; as well as the United Nations.

Mr. Downer said that Australia supported efforts to develop a global consensus on an appropriate common goal for reducing emissions.

Canberra
06 August 2007