United Nations Radio

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomes the statement by the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations on Tuesday that they aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 per cent by 2050. Hak-fan Lau is in Hokkaido, Japan where the Secretary-General is attending the G8 summit.

Mr. Ban said he was reasonably encouraged by the level of discussions and announcement. He said the key would be to act on them and to build momentum to reach a global deal emission reduction by 2009.

"We must agree by the end of December next year in Copenhagen to adopt the global agreement which is balanced, inclusive and ratifiable. This is a crucial task for us to do."

Climate change, together with the food crisis and achieving the Millennium Development Goals, are on top of Mr. Ban's agenda at the summit. Earlier today, in a speech to students at Hokkaido University on food crisis, Mr. Ban called on the G8 to take urgent actions to address the issue. Inaction, he said, will mean that we will have to pay a much higher price later.

Hak Fan Lau, UN Radio, Hokkaido.

(duration: 1'16")

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