Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Tuesday held talks with visiting Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on climate change and bilateral ties.
Rudd, in his first overseas trip as prime minister to attend the UN climate change conference, is under pressure to back an interim greenhouse gas reduction target of up to 40 percent for developed countries.
He told reporters he wants to help bridge the gap between rich and poor countries in the climate change negotiations.
Indonesia is currently hosting a U.N. climate change conference, which is tasked with drawing up a "roadmap" for negotiations on a new climate deal in the next two years before the current phase of the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012.
The Protocol requires 36 industrial countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions below levels specified for each of them. Overall, this should amount to reductions of at least 5 percent below 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012.
The new Australian government led by Rudd ratified the Kyoto Protocol last week. But Australia was vague on whether it supported an interim emissions reduction target of 25-40 percent by 2020 in draft text.
After the meeting, Rudd said he would set binding emissions targets after he received the results of Government-commissioned research, which is due to be finalized next July.
Rudd highlighted the relationship between Australia and Indonesia, saying the two nations enjoy increasing partnership on a regional and global scale.
He said the two sides would work together "to advance a decisive and effective outcome on climate change."
For his part, the Indonesian president said he expected greater cooperation between the two countries on trade, investment and law enforcement.
"I look forward to working closely with Prime Minister Rudd to develop our strategic relations over the long term," he said.
Source: Xinhua
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