Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Junichiro Koizumi met in Hakone today. They discussed environmental issues, focusing in particular on climate change as the greatest and most urgent environmental challenge facing mankind today.
| Backing the Kyoto Protocol |
| The two Prime Ministers shared the view that the Kyoto Protocol was an enormous achievement, and an important first step in tackling climate change. They reaffirmed their full commitment to the Protocol and the importance of its early entry into force and prompt implementation, and called upon Russia to ratify the Protocol as soon as possible. |
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| Towards Long Term Goals on Climate Change |
| The two Prime Ministers stressed that in the future all countries will need to take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as climate change is a serious threat that must be addressed by the whole international community. The British Prime Minister explained the UK's own commitment to put itself on a path to reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 60% by 2050. The Japanese Prime Minister explained that Japan would continue its utmost effort to reduce emissions by measures such as improvement of its energy efficiency, which is amongst the highest level of the OECD countries. They pledged to exert all possible efforts towards establishing global action based on an international regime in which all countries participate in tackling climate change based on their individual circumstances and capacity to act. |
| The two Prime Ministers firmly believe action to tackle climate change can and should be taken in ways that help both the environment and the economy; and that the use of science and technology is the key to this process. |
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| Taking Concrete Steps Together: the Way Forward |
| The Prime Ministers welcomed the progress made on follow-up to WSSD and the G8 action plan on "Science and Technology for Sustainable Development" in Evian, and called for further UK/Japan co-operation to stimulate continued scientific, technological and policy innovation. They decided to: |
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| Environmental Science |
| Continue joint UK-Japan collaboration in the field of climate change modelling using the Japanese 'Earth Simulator' supercomputer in Yokohama Institute for Earth Sciences of Japan Marine Science and Technology Centre (JAMSTEC); |
| Utilise the UK's Chevening Scholarships and the internship programme of the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES) in Japan to enable excellent young students from Japan and the UK to study environmental policy issues in each other's countries; |
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| Emissions Reductions |
| Share information concerning the practical use of the Kyoto Mechanisms (Joint Implementation (JI), Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and International Emissions Trading), such as the measures under implementation in each country and strategies to advance the use of the mechanisms; |
| To this end the British Embassy in Tokyo will participate in the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) pilot scheme to study experimental trading of CDM/JI credits and exchange information with the Ministry of the Environment on its pilot scheme to study utilisation of emission trading; |
| The British Embassy will also, as a pilot project of its own, establish greenhouse gas emissions levels and carry out an energy audit with a view to carrying out emission reduction projects in the future; |
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| Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy |
| Collaborate on standards and industry targets for energy-using appliances and equipment such as air-conditioning, fans, refrigerators, pumps, digital TV and other information and communication equipment at levels which will drive innovation and competition to bring forward more efficient products and create a stable environment for investment; |
| Exchange information and experience in order to better understand the challenges associated with a greater volume of renewables and embedded generation in the national grid; |
| Work together to promote renewables internationally, through such initiatives as the Renewable and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) and the Energy Literacy Initiative to which both Japan and the UK are partners; |
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| Automotives |
| Recognising the need to promote development and diffusion of clean and energy efficient vehicles in order both to improve air quality and reduce CO2 emissions, the UK will host a joint forum of officials, scientists and industry from both countries with a view to exchanging information and providing an opportunity for seeking possible bilateral collaborations and investments in R&D for future alternative vehicles and fuels. Recognising the importance of Europe as a market for clean and energy efficient vehicles, both countries will invite the participation of the European Commission and a limited number of experts from other countries; |
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| Illegal Logging |
| Recognising the importance of preserving forests and their invaluable role as carbon sinks, work to tackle illegal logging through the AFP (Asia Forest Partnership), ITTO (International Tropical Timber Organisation) and other relevant multilateral and bilateral arrangements, particularly in Asia; |
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| Other Areas |
| Endocrine Disrupters: Continue joint UK-Japanese research under the Implementing Arrangement between the UK and Japan on Research into Environmental Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals, with the UK attending the International Symposium on Environmental Endocrine Disrupters 2003. |
| Hold an event in Japan ahead of next year's G8 Environment Minister's meeting, aimed at learning from each other's strategies for improving resource productivity (doing more with less) and sustainable production and consumption patterns. |
