Climate Talks Edge Towards Deal

World climate talks edged towards a compromise agreement today, with delegates trying to agree a form of words on emission cuts that satisfies Europe and the US.

Officials said good progress had been made on almost all sections of the so-called Bali road map, though a deadlock remained on whether industrial countries should pledge to cut carbon pollution by 25-40% up to 2020.

Britain and Europe support the target but the US wants it removed. The dispute must be settled by tonight for countries to agree the road map, which is needed to frame a new global deal on carbon limits.

Rachmat Witoelar, Indonesia's environment minister, proposed a compromise dropping those specific mid-range numbers but reaffirming that emissions should be reduced at least by half by 2050.

Yvo de Boer, the head of the UN climate secretariat, said ministers were trying to agree language that based the road map on the scientific findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Europe says the IPCC supports the 25-40% by 2020 range; the US argues that is one of several possible scenarios.

Publicly, the Europeans stuck with their position. "We continue to insist on including a reference to indicating an emissions reductions range," said the EU environment commissioner, Stavros Dimas.

But Witoelar's proposal gave the two sides room to work out the long-expected compromise, producing a relatively vague mandate for two years of negotiations.

Earlier, the UN's De Boer said he remained "still very concerned about the pace of things". But he struck an optimistic note, saying: "I think everyone is working toward a result."