China has said an EU proposal seeking to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius did not have scientific backing and it needed to be studied before it was used to set policy.
Ma Kai, director of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, which steers climate change policy, told reporters that the EU proposal had not been subjected to proper study.
“I fear this lacks a scientific basis,” he said of the EU’s proposed goal.
China says its response to the threats of climate change must give overriding priority to economic development as the nation seeks to balance ambitions for growth with fears of environmental calamity.
“The first and overriding priorities of developing countries are sustainable development and poverty eradication,” the plan states. “China will continue to actively tackle climate change issues in accordance with its national sustainable development strategy in the future.”
http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/China-questions-EU-climate-plan/2007/06/04/1180809392675.html