Ban Encourages World Leaders To Accept Denmark’s Invite To UN Climate Summit
New York, Nov 12 2009 11:10AM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today strongly encouraged all heads of State and government
to accept the invitation issued 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. “The Secretary-General believes it is essential to maintain political momentum at the highest level and from all
sectors of society, and is optimistic than an ambitious, fair and effective climate deal can be reached at Copenhagen,”
the statement read.
ENDS