US rejects German climate position - G8 draft

LONDON, May 25 (Reuters) The United States has rejected Germany's bid to get the Group of Eight to agree to tough cuts in climate warming carbon emissions, according to a draft of the communique to be presented to the meeting.

''The US still has serious, fundamental concerns about this draft statement,'' it said in red ink comments at the start of a copy of the communique seen by Reuters.

G8 president Germany wants the meeting in the resort of Heiligendamm from June 6-8 to agree targets and timetables for cuts in global warming emissions and increases in energy efficiency in transport and power generation.

''The treatment of climate change runs counter to our overall position and crosses multiple 'red lines' in terms of what we simply cannot agree to,'' the US comments continued.

''This document is called FINAL, but we never agreed to any of the climate language present in the document.

''Our comments and reasoning are in the document below. We have tried to 'tread lightly' but there is only so far we can go given our fundamental opposition to the German position.'' Germany wants agreement to curb the rise in average temperatures this century to two degrees Celsius, to cut global emissions by 50 per cent below 1990 levels by 2050 and to raise energy efficiency in power and transport by 20 per cent by 2020.

Washington rejects all of these goals as well as language in the draft that supports an extension of carbon trading, because acceptance of it would imply acceptance of emission caps.

REUTERS SV ND1938