Russia to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent

Rio de Janeiro, June 22 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said Russia will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020 in comparison to 1990.

"I confirm that by 2020 greenhouse gas emission in Russia will be 25 percent less than the 1990 level," Medvedev said at the conference on Sustainable Development Climate.

Russia is ready to be a member of a global agreement on greenhouse gas emissions, he said. "But a truly global one, that involves all the major economies, not just some of them."

Developing countries such as China and India have not met their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. The US has said it would not participate in the protocol until 2013.

Medvedev added that it was necessary to ensure the growth of an energy-efficient "green economy" but warned against bureaucratising the transition to the "green growth" model.

He also stressed at the importance of establishing mechanisms to share best practices and technologies through a "green development". The UN should play a leading role in this process.

--IANS/RIA Novosti

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