SPIEGEL International: Merkel Wants Radical Plan on CO2 Cuts at EU Summit

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose government holds the rotating six-month presidency of the 27-nation European Union, wants to put the bloc at the forefront of global efforts to halt climate change and said she would seek a radical plan of action at a two-day summit of EU leaders in Brussels starting Thursday.

Merkel said in a newspaper interview that Europe must take a leading role so that it can demand that the United States, China and India take steps toward reducing their carbon emissions as well.

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The draft, agreed in preparatory talks among EU officials ahead of the summit, also calls for EU countries to reduce their emissions by 30 percent by 2020 compared with 1990 levels. A German proposal that all EU member countries should make binding commitments to cut their emissions by 20 percent didn't make it into the draft, however, Handelsblatt reported.

Many EU states have opposed binding targets and exact national quotas, so that the EU is now discussing a "burden sharing" on CO2 reductions instead, the economic daily wrote. Merkel has already stressed that Germany will reduce its emissions by more than 20 percent by 2020. But she has also said that Germany won't be able to continue to account for 75 percent of all EU cuts.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,469879,00.html
(SPIEGEL International ENGLISH site)
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If only Merkel for a change would be able to produce a bit
more steak after the sizzle. If it works this would be
very encouraging... but looking at her past performance
I have my doubts.
Good article, recommended read.