By Brian Johnson - 16th December 2004
The EU’s widely acclaimed unity on climate change was severely dented on Wednesday when Italian environment minister, Altero Matteoli called for the Kyoto Protocol to be scrapped.
Matteoli, in contrast to the EU’s unwavering support for the UN treaty, was quoted as saying that it was “unthinkable to go ahead without the US, China and India,” when the initial phase of the protocol ends in 2012.
“Seeing as these countries do not wish to talk about binding agreements, we must proceed with voluntary accords, bilateral pacts and commercial partnerships,” said Matteoli.
The Italian’s remarks cast a shadow on Brussels environment chief Stavros Dimas’ show of EU solidarity during his presentation of the bloc's emissions trading scheme to world environment ministers at the UN’s annual climate change conference in Buenos Aires.
Dimas, who was in Argentina to seek agreement with the US to work on a multilateral approach to climate change, praised Europe’s common stance on Kyoto and its emissions trading scheme.
“The EU has been able to assume a key role internationally because it was united internally,” said Dimas.
But the Italian’s comments that the international agreement is useless without the agreement of three of the world’s biggest polluters will we welcomed in Washington.
The US favours a voluntary approach, after it withdrew from the Kyoto agreement in 2001.
Italian environmentalists were quick to condemn Mattel’s remarks.
“Italy risks going outside Europe. This position…radically differs from that voiced by the EU in recent days,” said WWF and green NGO Legambiente.
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