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Japan has been widely condemned for weakening its target on greenhouse gas emission reductions during the ongoing United Nations climate talks in Warsaw with delegations from nearly 200 nations.
The Japanese government on Friday announced the new target of cutting carbon emissions by 3.8 percent by 2020 compared to its 2005 levels, in fact equal to an increase of 3.1 percent compared to its 1990 levels.
The fact that Japan abandoned its 25-percent reduction target from 1990 levels and proposed 3.1 percent increase compared to 1990 levels have caused much criticism among national authorities and environmental organizations.
Major players expressed their disappointment and regret about the decision, including the UN's climate chief Christiana Figueres, the Euroepan Union and China. Brazil also said it was concerned with "individual actors that are backtracking to their commitments."
"Japan's new targets are outrageous.. Withdrawing from climate action is like a slap in the face of those suffering from the impacts of climate change such as Philippines," said Wael Hmaidan, director of Climate Action Network International, a body of 850 non-governmental organizations.
Japan was without doubt the hottest topic as negotiators wrapped up their first week of the conference aimed at laying the groundwork for a new global climate deal in 2015 and making progress on finance issues as well as the loss and damage mechanism for developing countries.EU "DISAPPOINTED"
The European Union said it was disappointed at the weakening of Japan's new target, urging developed countries to stand by their mitigation commitments.
The EU and its 28 member states called on Japan to consider the implications of the new target for Japan's contribution to international mitigation action, the EU delegation said in a press conference here on Friday afternoon.
"Up until now, Japan has been a leader in implementing effective policies to reduce emissions in line with its pledges," it said, adding that the bloc would further 'engage with Japan' on climate change particularly during the EU-Japan summit in Tokyo later this month.CHINA "DISMAYED"
Su Wei, deputy chief of the Chinese delegation, said he had no words to describe his "dismay" while taking the question from a Japanese reporter on the issue on Thursday.
"This is not only backward movement from the Kyoto Protocol, but also a startling backward movement from the Convention," Su said, who is also director of the climate change department of China's National Development and Reform Commission.
Japan has the responsibility to implement the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol even if it has chosen not to be part of the second commitment period from 2013 to 2020, and it must honor its commitments to reduce its emissions, Su said.NUCLEAR EXCUSE
Japan's chief negotiator Hiroshi Minami defended on Friday that the new target was due to the loss of the country's dependence on nuclear powers after the Fukushima disaster.
"The new target is based on the assumption of no nuclear power station.. Some say it's an easy target, but it is not," Minami said in a press conference, while adding that the target might be revised once the country's economy could get better.
Japan had generated over a quarter of its power from nuclear energy prior to the earthquake and tsunami two years ago, since which its 50 actors stopped working for safety reasons.
Minami further argued that the previous 25-percent target had been based on a nuclear share of over 40 percent in electricity generation.
However, climate think tanks noted that even if Japan could no longer rely on nuclear power, it should still be capable of achieving a 17-percent reduction target by 2020 compared to 2005 levels.JAPAN'S STRATEGY
Japan would remain committed to the long-term target of the 80-percent reduction by 2050 for developed countries, Minami said.
In parallel to the new target announcement, Minami tried to shift the focus of international media at the press conference to the country's strategic climate plan on innovation of low carbon technologies, application of existing technologies and partnership with other stakeholders.
Japan also pledged to provide 16 billion dollars of both public and private finance to developing countries over three years since this year, he added.
But he also acknowledged that, concerning the implementation of climate funds pledged by developed countries, Japan had no plan at this year's climate talks.
