World leaders urged to attend UN climate summit

New York, 13 Nov-(ANA)-UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has strongly encouraged all heads of State and government to accept the invitation by Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen to attend the closing days of next month’s United Nations climate

change conference in Copenhagen.

“The Secretary-General believes that direct head of State and government

involvement is essential for governments to reach agreement on the core issues

at the heart of a global climate change deal,” his spokesperson said in a

statement.

The conference, set to begin on 7 December, aims to reach accord on a successor

to the Kyoto Protocol, the 1997 pact – part of a larger UN climate change treaty

– which has strong, legally binding measures committing 37 industrialized States

to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5 per cent against 1990

levels over the period from 2008 to 2012.

It will culminate in a summit-level gathering on 17 and 18 December, which Mr.

Ban encourages all world leaders to attend. (ANA)

FA/ANA/13 November 2009----