U.S. APPLAUDS ARGENTINE PLEDGE ON EMISSIONS CONTROLS
USIA
12 November 1998
TEXT: U.S. APPLAUDS ARGENTINE PLEDGE ON EMISSIONS CONTROLS
(Eizenstat commends leadership on climate change) (420)
BUENOS AIRES -- Argentina's decision to set voluntary targets for
reduced greenhouse gas emissions is a "clarion call to other nations,"
says U.S. Under Secretary of State Stuart Eizenstat.
"As the first developing country to make this pledge, Argentina
demonstrates great leadership, real courage and a deep appreciation
that climate change is a global challenge that demands a truly global
solution," the U.S. official said during the fourth Conference of the
Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC), being held Nov. 2-13 in Buenos Aires.
Argentina will thus join the developed countries that agreed last
December in Kyoto to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide and
other gasses that contribute to global warming.
Following is the text of Eizenstat's Nov. 11 statement:
(begin text)
Statement by Stuart E. Eizenstat
U.S. Under Secretary of State for
Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs
November 11, 1998
On behalf of the United States, I commend President Menem's historic
announcement today that Argentina will voluntarily take on an
emissions target for the first commitment period of the Kyoto
Protocol.
As the first developing country to make this pledge, Argentina
demonstrates great leadership, real courage and a deep appreciation
that climate change is a global challenge that demands a truly global
solution. We can pass on a livable world to future generations only if
all nations -- developed and developing alike -- meet this challenge
head on. As the Climate Change Convention states, we must each act
according to our "common but differentiated responsibilities."
We applaud Argentina's effort to chart a new pathway for developing
countries to deepen their commitments and take full advantage of the
Protocol's important flexibility mechanisms, including emissions
trading. These mechanisms will benefit both our environment and our
economy, allowing nations to achieve greater greenhouse gas reductions
at a faster pace and a lower cost.
In the long run, the objectives of the Protocol will be achieved only
if countries that wish, according to their own convictions, to chart
their own sovereign path to lower emissions are allowed to do so.
Today, Argentina has taken a bold step towards a healthier, more
sustainable future. President Menem's pledge is a clarion call for all
nations to join in strengthening the global effort to meet the most
profound environmental challenge of the 21st century.
(end text)