TOKYO (AFP) — Japan, Britain and the United States will propose a special fund to promote clean technologies as part of efforts to combat climate change, a Japanese official said Thursday.
The proposal will be put forward at a meeting of top finance officials from the Group of Seven industrialised nations on Saturday in Tokyo.
"Japan, Britain and the United States are currently examining a plan to establish a multilateral clean technology fund in cooperation with the World Bank," a finance ministry official told reporters.
"The three countries will explain the content of their current discussions on the fund, and we'll see how the rest of the Group of Seven members react to it," the official said on customary condition of anonymity.
It was unclear whether the plans would be included in the official statement by the G7, which also includes Canada, France, Germany and Italy.
If the idea gains traction, existing organisations such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are expected to be involved.
Japan aims to take a lead in the debate over measures to cut greenhouse gas emissions when it hosts this year's Group of Eight summit, which also includes Russia, from July 7 to 9 at the northern lakeside resort of Toyako.
The world's second biggest economy after the United States, Japan is the home of the Kyoto Protocol, the landmark 1997 treaty that mandated cuts in greenhouse gas emissions heating up the planet.
Japan is far behind in meeting its Kyoto commitments as its economy recovers from recession in the 1990s.
As well as the issue of climate change, G7 powers are expected to discuss the worsening global economic outlook and recent financial market turmoil.
Source: AFP
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