Wednesday September 5, 2007
Rafidah’s remarks irk Canberra
By MERGAWATI ZULFAKAR
SYDNEY: Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz has yet to arrive here to attend the annual meeting with her Asia Pacific colleagues, but her criticism of Australia for promoting a climate change agenda at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit this weekend has irked Canberra.
The International Trade and Industry Minister has warned Australia, which is backed by the United States, against putting climate change at the top of the agenda of the summit as Apec is not the right forum.
A spokesman for Australia's Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, Malcolm Cole, was dismissive of Rafidah’s remarks.
“I don’t know if the Malaysian Trade Minister will be the be-all and end-all,” Cole was quoted in The Australian newspaper yesterday.
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Spruced up: A flowerbed designed as the symbol of the Apec summit at the Sydney Convention Centre. |
The ministerial level meeting begins today, preceding the leaders’ summit.
Malaysian officials are keeping mum on why she will be here for less than 24 hours and it is understood the host country was unhappy with her move to cut her visit short.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will arrive for the summit on Saturday.
The Apec summit includes Australia and the United States, which have refused to ratify the Kyoto Protocol setting greenhouse emission targets for developed countries, claiming it unfairly punished energy-rich countries like Australia, a major coal exporter.
Host Australian Prime Minister John Howard said over the weekend that the Kyoto Protocol was dead in the water and hoped to steer this week’s summit towards a new consensus among advanced and developing countries in the region.
According to a leaders' declaration draft on climate change, leaders will agree on cuts to energy use by at least 25% of 2005 levels, by 2030.
However, anything agreed by Apec is not necessarily binding on members.
Howard, facing the general election soon and battling dwindling support in opinion polls, has been accused of using Apec to boost his image.
The Australian media have been front-paging news poll surveys that Howard was way behind opposition leader Kevin Rudd.
Meanwhile, Abdullah, who will be here until Monday, will hold separate meetings with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and US Chamber of Commerce president Thomas Donohue.
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