UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged on Monday developed countries to take the lead in a global drive to tackle the challenges of climate change.
"Developed countries need to take a clear lead, but success is possible only if all countries act," Ban said at the opening of a two-day General Assembly debate on climate change.
He said the Bali conference last December has set a target for the world to reach an agreement by the end of 2009 on action to counter the effects of climate change.
"The more ambitious the commitments by developed countries, the more actions we can expect from developing countries," Ban said. "The more developing countries engage, the more ambitiously the developed countries will commit."
"Climate change is our opportunity to advance sustainable development," he noted, stressing the need to "encourage new kinds of cleaner technologies, industries and jobs and integrate climate change risks into national policies and practices."
"This will require all partners to join forces -- governments, intergovernmental organizations, the private sector, civil society and individuals around the world," he added.
The two-day session, convened by assembly president Srgjan Kerim, is meant to build on the momentum generated by the international climate conference in December on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, where delegates from nearly 190 nations agreed to adopt a blueprint to control global warming gases before the end of next year.
Source: Xinhua
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