Emissions: 50% cut by 2050, but no near-term plan

THE Group of Eight leading industrial nations yesterday endorsed halving world emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050, edging forward in the battle against global warming but stopping short of tough, nearer- term targets.

The G8 countries — the US, Japan, Russia, France, Germany, Britain, Canada and Italy — also called on all leading economies to join in the effort to stem the potentially dangerous rise in world temperatures.

“This global challenge can only be met by a global response, in particular, by the contributions from all major economies,” the G8 said in a joint, five-page communiqué on climate.