German parliament ratifies Kyoto protocol
Date: 25-Mar-02
Country: GERMANY
Environment Minister Juergen Trittin praised the vote, telling parliament last week: "We are the leaders in this field and want to remain in the lead."
Ahead of a summit on sustainable energy to take place in Johannesburg in September, European Union environment ministers have pledged to ratify the treaty by the beginning of June.
The 15-member EU has led an offensive to persuade other industrialised countries such as Russia, Canada and Japan to ratify the treaty since U.S. President George W. Bush pulled out of Kyoto last year.
The treaty must be ratified by at least 55 countries representing 55 percent of developed countries' carbon dioxide emissions to come into force.
