Asia-Pacific leaders agreed today to adopt a "long-term aspirational goal" to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Australian Prime Minister John Howard said.
Mr Howard said 21 Asia-Pacific leaders meeting in Sydney agreed on the need for all nations, developing and developed, to contribute according to their own capacities and circumstances to reducing greenhouse gases.
"We are serious about addressing in a sensible way, compatible with our different economic needs, the great challenge of climate change," Mr Howard told reporters at the end of the first day of the weekend summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec).
"This demonstrates the relevance of Apec. It demonstrates that Apec is very much alive and kicking." Green groups thought otherwise. "The Sydney Declaration is really just a Sydney distraction from real action on climate change," Greenpeace energy campaigner Catehrine Fitzpatrick said.
"The failure of APEC to produce meaningful progress on climate change confirms that the place to do this is at the Kyoto negotiations in Bali in December."
Proponents of the declaration say it sets the stage for the UN climate convention's annual summit in Bali, Indonesia in December, which is looking for a successor to the existing UN pact, known as the Kyoto Protocol, due to expire in 2012.
The declaration was seen as a compromise between the rich and poor Apec economies, which together account for about 60 per cent of the world's economy.