BRUSSELS, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- World leaders must move forward with a legal agreement on climate change even if a treaty is not reached at a Denmark summit, EU leaders say.
Copenhagen, Denmark, plays host to a major environmental summit beginning Monday. The aim of the conference is to find a replacement regime for the expiring Kyoto Protocol.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said it was clear a treaty would not emerge from Copenhagen but stressed the need for a legal framework that addressed limits to global warming.
"I want a simple, understandable and clear text coming out of Copenhagen that is politically binding on all countries while reflecting our common but differentiated responsibilities," he said.
The European Union said it would push for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, a framework for action on adaptation to climate change and a "fast start" package to help developing nations address climate-change challenges.
The EU in 2008 agreed to a plan to cut its emissions by 20 percent by 2020 but said it aimed to increase that level to 30 percent if world partners followed suit.
"We cannot commit now to more if others do not move as well," said Barroso. "And we are urging the others to move to the best of their capacity."
