Schroeder pointed out that Germany will host a conference on the Kyoto agreement this summer, and said the U.S. government will have to explain its decision there. Schroeder said he raised several questions about Bush's plan for a missile defense shield, including who would be covered by it, whether it is technically feasible and what the repercussions would be for nuclear disarmament. Germany's environmental Green Party is in a governing coalition with Schroeder's Social Democrats. The ranking Green member is Joschka Fischer, the foreign minister. Europeans are upset mainly over Bush's attitudes toward the Kyoto agreement, negotiated in 1997 to lower levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Many scientists think greenhouse gases are heating up the Earth's atmosphere dangerously.
The agreement, never ratified by the United States, specifies that industrial nations must reduce emissions by 2012 to below 1990 levels. The United States would be required to cut emissions by 7.2 percent of its 1990 level. Fleischer told reporters that Bush wants to work with U.S. allies on a plan that would require developing nations to meet certain standards. Schroeder said in an interview in Wednesday's Los Angeles Times. Japanese officials also expressed dismay about the Bush administration's view of the Kyoto treaty.