The Hindu : Front Page : No bailouts for climate crisis, says Pranab

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Friday, Feb 06, 2009
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No bailouts for climate crisis, says Pranab

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said that the global financial crisis should not become an excuse for the developed countries to renege on their commitments on environmental protection.

Inaugurating the Ninth Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) here on Thursday, Mr. Mukherjee said there were no “bailouts” for a climate crisis and climate change should also not be an excuse to add a greater burden or impose conditionalities on to the development challenges that the developing countries face.

He described climate change as a threat, but one that also presented a unique opportunity to work together just as the world responded to the global financial crisis. “The large amounts of public funds that are being deployed to address the financial crisis is a testimony to the fact that we can, given the requisite political will, generate similar funds to tackle climate change.” A large part of these funds could be mobilised to support a major collaborative effort between developed and developing countries to deal with the climate change.

“This could include a global fund to promote renewable energy, both in terms of application of existing technologies as well as R&D into new and innovative technologies.”

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