Whether it is the war against the greenhouse effect or the war against money laundering and tax havens, the world's leading power cannot disengage from the planet's problems. The Kyoto Protocol, which commits industrialised countries to reduce output of fossil-fuel gases blamed for atmospheric warming, stands on the brink of collapse after the US administration announced in March that it would not ratify the treaty. Washington said the treaty was unfair because big emerging countries such as China and India are not bound to cut emissions. It also pointed to divisions among scientists, some of whom say global warming might be far less dangerous than feared. Fabius rebutted this.
Climate change is an inevitable reality.
Its long-term effects will definitely disrupt the daily lives of millions of people, in the northern as well as the southern hemisphere. In some regions, the human and economic balance is at threat. Political leaders who use uncertainty about the facts to justify their refusal to apply new solutions have gone down the wrong road. The OECD meeting, gathering economy, finance and environment ministers from the 30-member rich nations' club, followed talks among environment leaders Wednesday where the row over Kyoto erupted into the open. The EU has declared it will push ahead with ratifying Kyoto in time for a 2002 global summit on sustainable development.