KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia backed Japan's new initiative to halve global emissions by 2050, the two countries said Friday after their leaders held talks on issues ranging from energy and trade cooperation to stability in North Korea.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arrived Thursday on his first official visit to Malaysia as part of an Asian tour, which earlier took him to Indonesia and India.
"This visit is a reaffirmation of the continued interest Japan has in enhancing economic and trade relations as well as investment,'' Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told reporters.
A joint statement issued at the end of the talks between Abe and his Malaysian counterpart, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, said the two leaders "shared the need to cut global emissions by half from the current level by 2050 in order to stabilize atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases.''
The emission reduction target is part of Abe's "Cool Earth 50'' initiative, which was announced in May and calls for an effective framework for addressing climate change beyond 2012.
All countries would participate under the auspices of the United Nations.
The statement said Abdullah "highly appreciated'' the initiative.
Abe and Abdullah also agreed it is important to promote sustainable forest management in Malaysia, to counter greenhouse gas emissions and to conserve the planet's biodiversity.
Abdullah also urged more Japanese involvement in Malaysia's southern and northern regions, which are being developed as new investment hubs.
The two countries reached a free trade pact in July last year, resulting in Japanese investment in Malaysia increasing by about five times.
The two leaders said a similar free trade pact between Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations would "consolidate the prosperity of the region.''
Posts
