George Bush's senior climate change negotiator today poured cold water on Tony Blair's hopes of achieving a concrete US commitment to cutting greenhouse gas emissions at this week's G8 summit.
With G8 leaders arriving in Germany for 48 hours of talks, James Connaughton, senior environmental advisor to the president, said the US remained opposed to the target of stabilizing global climate increases to two degrees.
That stance appears to frustrate Mr Blair's hopes - expressed in today's Guardian on the eve of the summit - of using his personal influence with Mr Bush to achieve a "substantial cut" in emissions.
Amid heavy security Mr Blair and President Putin arrived separately at Rostock airport just before 4pm, to join other G8 leaders already ensconced in the secure conference venue at Heiligendamm.
G8 leaders are scheduled to discuss climate change tomorrow afternoon.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the conference, Mr Connaughton said: "We have opposed the two degree temperature target. We are not alone in that - Japan, Russia, Canada and most other countries that I have spoken with do not support that as an objective for a variety of reasons.
"At this moment in time on that one particular issue we do not yet have agreement," he added.
Mr Blair's official spokesman this morning also cautioned against assumptions that a deal on an emissions target is in the bag at Heiligendamm.
"We are still very much in favor of a target," the spokesman told reporters. "We believe a target is right and we are aiming to get a target.
"The question is how far can we get at the summit? What was encouraging about President Bush last week was, on the one hand he said there should be a global framework, and secondly he said there should be a limit of some kind on global emissions."
The prime minister's spokesman continued: "The key question is, what is the process to get to that target? What's important is that we push as hard as we can at this summit and get a process whereby we continue that movement.
"That's why we welcome the US proposal for a meeting in the autumn, but it has to be clear that that is part of the UN process."
This year's G8 is thought be particularly unpredictable and fluid, not least because the so-called "sherpas", or backroom negotiators, have failed to agree a draft text in advance for the eight leaders to negotiate from.
Mr Blair, keen to secure a landmark global deal on climate change before leaving office at the end of the month, this morning expressed confidence he could get further movement from President Bush.
He told the Guardian: "You could have a situation where this is agreed at the G8 - which is my preference - or you could see how it is agreed in principle, but you have to work out the details of it later.
"The important thing is that if we get an agreement to the idea of a global target of a substantial reduction in emissions, it needs to be clear that it is in the order of 50%. You are not talking about 20%.
"The important point is I will be going for the maximum and I will want more."
Mr Bush's intervention last week - calling for summits of the 15 most polluting countries outside the UN Kyoto process - was seen at the time as an attempt to divert the G8 talks from reaching an agreement on climate change.
But Mr Blair insisted today the announcement - still shorn of any targets - represented an America "on the move".
He said: "I think the announcement by President Bush last week was significant and important, and it is absurd to say otherwise, since it moved things on. On the other hand you then need to flesh out what it means."
The G8 leaders are scheduled to discuss climate change in open session tomorrow afternoon.
© Guardian News & Media 2008
Published: 6/6/2007
With G8 leaders arriving in Germany for 48 hours of talks, James Connaughton, senior environmental advisor to the president, said the US remained opposed to the target of stabilizing global climate increases to two degrees.
That stance appears to frustrate Mr Blair's hopes - expressed in today's Guardian on the eve of the summit - of using his personal influence with Mr Bush to achieve a "substantial cut" in emissions.
Amid heavy security Mr Blair and President Putin arrived separately at Rostock airport just before 4pm, to join other G8 leaders already ensconced in the secure conference venue at Heiligendamm.
G8 leaders are scheduled to discuss climate change tomorrow afternoon.
Speaking to reporters ahead of the conference, Mr Connaughton said: "We have opposed the two degree temperature target. We are not alone in that - Japan, Russia, Canada and most other countries that I have spoken with do not support that as an objective for a variety of reasons.
"At this moment in time on that one particular issue we do not yet have agreement," he added.
Mr Blair's official spokesman this morning also cautioned against assumptions that a deal on an emissions target is in the bag at Heiligendamm.
"We are still very much in favor of a target," the spokesman told reporters. "We believe a target is right and we are aiming to get a target.
"The question is how far can we get at the summit? What was encouraging about President Bush last week was, on the one hand he said there should be a global framework, and secondly he said there should be a limit of some kind on global emissions."
The prime minister's spokesman continued: "The key question is, what is the process to get to that target? What's important is that we push as hard as we can at this summit and get a process whereby we continue that movement.
"That's why we welcome the US proposal for a meeting in the autumn, but it has to be clear that that is part of the UN process."
This year's G8 is thought be particularly unpredictable and fluid, not least because the so-called "sherpas", or backroom negotiators, have failed to agree a draft text in advance for the eight leaders to negotiate from.
Mr Blair, keen to secure a landmark global deal on climate change before leaving office at the end of the month, this morning expressed confidence he could get further movement from President Bush.
He told the Guardian: "You could have a situation where this is agreed at the G8 - which is my preference - or you could see how it is agreed in principle, but you have to work out the details of it later.
"The important thing is that if we get an agreement to the idea of a global target of a substantial reduction in emissions, it needs to be clear that it is in the order of 50%. You are not talking about 20%.
"The important point is I will be going for the maximum and I will want more."
Mr Bush's intervention last week - calling for summits of the 15 most polluting countries outside the UN Kyoto process - was seen at the time as an attempt to divert the G8 talks from reaching an agreement on climate change.
But Mr Blair insisted today the announcement - still shorn of any targets - represented an America "on the move".
He said: "I think the announcement by President Bush last week was significant and important, and it is absurd to say otherwise, since it moved things on. On the other hand you then need to flesh out what it means."
The G8 leaders are scheduled to discuss climate change in open session tomorrow afternoon.
© Guardian News & Media 2008
Published: 6/6/2007
