France, Africa appeal to limit rising temperatures
France's President Nicolas Sarkozy (R) gives a press conference
after a meeting with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi (L) at
the Elysee Palace in Paris.
15 December, 2009
PARIS (AFP) – France and African states drew up a joint statement Tuesday backing targets to limit the rise in global temperatures to two degrees Celsius and to offer financial aid to help poor countries adapt.
"Such stakes for the planet are so important that an alliance between Africa and Europe is absolutely crucial, and that is the message I will give to (US President) Barack Obama," French President Nicolas Sarkozy said.
He made the comment after meeting here with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi as part of a joint Europe-Africa push to reach a global deal at UN climate talks in Copenhagen due to end on Friday.
Zenawi is to represent the 53 member states of the African Union at the talks in Denmark.
Sarkozy said he wanted the United States' support for 10 billion dollars of financial aid per year for poorer states between 2010 and 2012, a proposal agreed by Sarkozy and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown last month.
Sarkozy and Zenawi put out a joint statement calling on leaders at the talks to "adopt an ambitious agreement on 18 December limiting the increase of temperatures to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels."
It also asked them to ensure that "vulnerable countries will receive adequate financing to face the challenge" of the fight against global warming.
The statement called for new taxes on financial transactions, aviation and shipping to raise the billions needed to fight climate change.
Europe was turning up the heat on China and the United States in Copenhagen Tuesday, demanding the world's two biggest carbon polluters give ground to unlock a pact to tame the monster of climate change.