Australia's new minister for climate change, Penny Wong, kept her cool yesterday as she made her debut on the world stage under the blazing Balinese sun.
However, the Malaysian-born member of Parliament left journalists empty-handed as she refused to commit Australia to binding reductions on greenhouse-gas emissions.
Ms Wong, the first ethnic Asian member of the Australian cabinet, said her government would be ready to play a 'leadership role' in fighting climate change and called for developing countries to do their part.
Her portfolio was created only this month by the new Australian government headed by Labor Party leader Kevin Rudd.
'I want to make it clear that Australia is committed to be part of the global solution in global warming,' Ms Wong said. 'That is why our first act of government was to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, and we have also committed to a 60 per cent reduction of 2000 levels [of greenhouse-gas emissions] by 2050.'
Nevertheless, the minister refused to commit Australia to reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions of 25 to 40 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020. The goals are contained in a draft proposal being distributed among government delegations in Bali.
