Signs of new EU-Brazil alliance on climate change

BRUSSELS - A summit between the European Union and Brazil in Stockholm on Tuesday (6 October) saw leaders call for added urgency on climate change negotiations.

Amid rhetoric suggesting the formation of a new strategic alliance on the topic, the two sides also announced their intention to meet again in November, just days before the start of UN climate change negotiations in Copenhagen.

"We want to increase the pressure on this climate debate," said Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, whose country currently holds the bloc's rotating presidency.

"There is a lot of concern that we are not making enough progress," he said.

Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, the leaders made supportive comments on each others' commitments to reduce carbon emissions, with Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva highlighting Europe's more ambitious targets when compared to the US.

He said it was clear that each country should take responsibility for their own emissions, referring to China amongst others.

Deforestation

Last month at the United Nations General Assembly, Mr Lula announced a target of 80 percent reduction in deforestation by 2020 for Brazil.

Although they would like to see greater cuts, the announcement is seen as significant by environmental groups, as Brazil's emissions come largely through deforestation. Brazil is the world's fourth largest carbon emitting nation after China, the US and Indonesia.

Deforestation releases carbon stored in plants into the atmosphere and is by far the world's single largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, more than all the world's cars, aircraft and trains put together.

Mr Reinfeldt welcomed Brazil's "very ambitious national objectives" to contain deforestation, a further sign of a potential new alliance, although analysts say it is too early to say how much real convergence between the two sides has taken place.

Mr Lula cited the need for accurate figures on national emission levels, something a specially-created UN department could produce in the future.

"Once we know this we will know what each county has to do in terms of carbon sequestration and carbon emissions," he said.

EU ties border tax to Copenhagen

Developing countries have reacted strongly to suggestions coming from within the EU on the need to set up a border tax on goods whose production involves high levels of carbon emissions.

In a recent interview with EUobserver, China's spokesman for foreign affairs Qin Gang said such a tax would be considered as little more than blatant protectionism.

But French moves to follow Scandinavian countries in setting up an internal carbon tax on the burning of fossil fuels and tentative moves by the European Commission towards a EU-wide carbon tax have brought the issue to the fore.

Policymakers are worried that high-polluting companies may simply relocate overseas and proceed to sell the high-emission goods back to the region - a process known as carbon leakage.

Mr Reinfeldt said the EU was keen to get away from discussions on carbon leakage and border taxes, hoping instead for a comprehensive global deal on carbon emissions in Copenhagen.

"But if Copenhagen is not ambitious enough it will return," warned the Swedish prime minister.