Developing economies don't back G-8 climate goal : A joint gathering of major developed and developing nations on Wednesday agreed that climate change was "one of the great global challenges of our time" and pledged to back a United Nations effort to conclude new climate pact by 2009. The major economies said they supported longterm and midterm goals for greenhouse-gas reductions, but endorsed no targets. It came a day after the Group of Eight major industrial democracies set a goal of halving heat-trapping emissions that contribute to global warming by 2050. The U.S.-led, 17-member group issued a final statement on the sidelines of the Group of Eight summit in northern Japan. "We support a shared vision for long-term cooperative action, including a long-term global goal for emission reductions, that assures growth,...
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